On the night of my husband’s murder, at the crime scene, while sitting behind a bush tucked away from everyone, I yearned for a sign that Richard was in heaven. I felt like I could only “accept” his death if I had confirmation that I would see him again and...
For some reason I have recently had several challenges that have caused me to struggle with feelings of anxiety. In my previous post I shared how I overcame those feelings by Trusting God. Trusting God was the subject of our most recent video conversation for the website. In the video,...
After months of anxiety and worry, I finally took a step forward and did something that I was petrified to do. Yesterday we made the first video in a series called “Talking about Grief and Loss” for our website! For a long time now, I have known that we needed to do...
One of the biggest struggles that I have is not complaining, whining, and resisting my new life situation. It’s hard because this isn’t something that I can just forget about; it’s in my face everyday. When I roll over in the morning, when I walk by the family photos in...
In the past three years I lost my mom, then my husband, and just recently my dad to death. It has been a very painful process to say the least. I have felt my heart shatter and have, at times, wondered if I could do this. Yes, I miss my...
Recently I have been dealing with a bunch of compounding health issues. I traveled out to Utah to get treatment from one of my husband’s best friend from residency. I was disappointed to find out that my problems were not easy to resolve. I’m facing surgery here in a few weeks...
When life changes unexpectedly, it leaves us at a crossroads—where we have to decide which path we are going to choose, or allow paths to find us. We can choose to slide downhill or we can continue to climb forward. Crossroads find us at all walks of life. Sometimes...
Have you ever experienced things in your life you just don’t understand? I’m sure it is safe to say most, if not all of us, have experienced those moments. Those moments where you want to ask God “why” and “how come”. Those moments where there is very little peace and...
Ashlee Birk has been one of my many tender mercies the past couple of weeks. See her story here. I am grateful for her friendship…she has sent me text messages of hope, love and encouragement. She gets it! She understands the importance of directing your attention outward instead of inward. Life...
Sometimes it feels like I have been living the last 11 years for a lifetime and at the same time it amazes me at how fast it really has gone. Jake was killed in an accident working in a coal mine 11 years ago. I had 3 small boys and a new...
It was the best of times. It was the worst of times…High school. That’s a whole new world in it of itself. A new bizarre world where everything that you do or don’t do may be a pivotal choice in your life. Boys like girls, girls like boys. Dating becomes...
My name is Veronica Clarke. I am a mother of four, and at age 39 I became a widow when my husband’s plane crash ended both his life and his father’s. That tragic event shattered my reality. With my support and best friend gone, the temptation was very real to sink into utter...
Today we will be discussing how understanding our relationship with God and His purpose for us can be a foundation in helping us deal with difficult trials. We will cover how to discover what God’s will is and how that can help you to move forward and do difficult things...
It seems— just about when you have things figured out in life, something new comes up to change it all. I have always taken pride in my creations—including the ones that were only in my mind. I like to have a plan and I look forward to crossing things off...
So we are back from the Grand Canyon… It was an awesome trip with my son and sister! While we were hiking I had a lot of time to think about the sale of our house and how I had handled the back and forth offers and...
Today I am driving to the trailhead of Havasupai Falls in the Grand Canyon. My senior son and I are backpacking together. This is one of the perks of not having a husband… I get to do some neat one-on-one things with my kids. The timing however is...
Peace… isn’t that what everyone is craving deep in their souls? I’m not talking about ‘world peace’ or the ‘peace movement of the 1970’s.’ I’m talking about this inner peace that allows us to be still and not distraught when the storms of life rage around us. It’s...
I am shocked at the marked difference between this year and last year. This lets me see growth and it gives me so much hope for the future The funny thing is that my circumstances have not really changed…. What has changed is me. My perspective, my attitude, and...
Part 2 of Dating and Marrying a Widow…read part one here. Written By-Curtis Toone (second husband of author Julie Toone) *Disclaimer: as this particular blog post primarily deals with theological issues related to Christianity and more particularly to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, be advised that if you’re...
