This past Monday, our oldest daughter and I did our yearly October photo shoot. This year, she had a Gothic theme in regards to her clothing. We weren’t able to make it to The Ruins this year, so a park down the hill from our house was the setting.
Here are some of the photos from that fun, foggy morning.
A Mother’s Dying Wish – A Daughter’s Heartfelt Promise
Daughter gives her dying mother her wish and gets her writings published.
New York, NY – Pauli Rose Libsohn made a promise to her mother before she died to get her writing published and she has delivered four times on that promise.
The story behind What is Love had its beginnings in the 1930’s at the beach in Far Rockaway, Queens, NY. A true-life narrative of a love affair that encompasses over 60 years, beginning with a 12 year old girl named Mitzi, who fell in love at first sight with David, the handsome lifeguard, and her years pursuing him. It tells a captivating tale of emotions, desire, and a bond never broken between a man and a woman, a husband and wife, and a promise kept by a daughter.
A story of incredible odds, Mitzi and David succeed through inner strength and perseverance of a love so strong that it overcame all obstacles. The compelling story of their life-long passion and a love confirmed and reconfirmed throughout the years. A story of romance and commitment, which in today’s world is almost non-existent. The message of love and the question – What is love?
The author of What is Love is the daughter of Mitzi and David, Pauli Rose Libsohn, who has written an enthralling and fascinating biography about a fairytale that DID come true.
Pauli Rose has published 3 books, Immortal Kisses – Confessions of a Poet, Songs of You: A Postscript, Silhouettes: Literary Passageways, based on the poetry and writings of her talented mother Mitzi, that tells the story of their love, the bond that was never broken and Pauli Rose’s promise to tell the story of love to the world.
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Dear Baby Girl, my sweet Dorian,
Twenty-five years ago today, you were born into Heaven. My heart died that day right along with you. I prayed for you, to have you, to hold you. I wanted you so desperately. I only had you long enough to know that He heard my prayers and then you were gone. Born asleep, never to know the pain that this life holds, but to also never know my complete love for you, which grieves me to this day.
What would you have been like? Would you have had my eyes, my hair? Would you have liked to watch the birds, too? Would you have been a bashful beauty? Or, would you have been like your daddy, blue eyes, a sense of humor, an outgoing personality, and able to speak in public? These are things I will never know.
What I am sure of is that you would have loved to read, just as your sisters and brothers do. I think that you would have loved My Little Pony, too. Maybe. The others are three against one on that one.
On this day of I miss yous and what would have beens, I wanted to let you know that you are still very much a part of my heart. The two weeks of grief that I was allowed to have and still be considered normal and not a mental case are long past. Saying good-bye to you has become a part of who I am. You are not here. I won’t see you again until Heaven, however long or short a time that may be. Until then, my heart cries for you.
I love you, baby girl. Have a beautiful birthday up there with all of our family. Please hug the folks for me.
“There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love.” –Washington Irving
Image Source: Pixabay
Holding the Net: Caring for My Mother on the Tightrope of Aging by Melanie P. Merriman
I, David, have been in two nursing homes since 2012. Suzanne and I realize that no matter how hard these people try, a nursing home is as close to prison as most of us will ever get. One day I said to our friend Jerry that I had been in a nursing home, had never been to prison, but imagined that the nursing home was as close to prison as most of us will ever get. Jerry said he had been in both and the nursing home is worse.
This book is an enthralling story of one family’s struggle with their mother’s end of life and how they dealt with it. But there is a backspin. The backspin is that the author had been a hospice professional for years and knew most of the ins and outs of how the system works, or doesn’t.
This family wasn’t hurting financially, but still had to deal with at least some of the heartache many families have to deal with when putting their loved ones in rehab. Merriman was able to see first-hand how Medicaid patients are treated far differently than others, even though the nursing facility does its best to provide top quality services for all.
We feel that all rooms in all medical facilities should be private, not semi-private. How good are our privacy walls when we share a room with another person and their visitors?
This is a book you will want to read without stopping. You won’t want to put it down. The author shows us how scared her mother is in all of this. The author was scared and lost; her sister was, too. How could they help their mother?
We give Holding the Net all five stars. It is very well-written and very informative. It is written in a very readable style. If you or someone you love will be facing end of life issues any time soon, you will want to read this book.
We were sent a complimentary copy of this book. We are under no obligation to write any review, positive or negative.
We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
Notice: This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, we may financially benefit from your transaction, at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support.
Three of Cups by Kathy Wilson Florence
Three of Cups is the story of the lives of three women of two different generations. There is love, family, war, deceit, and tragedy. There is laughter and there are tears.
I (Suzanne) couldn’t put this book down. It had my mind going on hyper mode trying to put it all together, making connections between this person, this situation, and that one. It kept me wondering how the author would pull it all together for resolution at the end, and would it have a happy ending or would lives be ripped apart.
Kathy Wilson Florence is a great storyteller who weaves us in and out of the timelines and lives of the three main characters and support people along the way.
There is minimal use of profanity (and none of the major profane words) and there are no graphic intimate scenes. I give Three of Cups 5 stars and think that you will find it hard to put down, too!
We were sent a complimentary copy of this book. We are under no obligation to write any review, positive or negative.
We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
Notice: This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, we may financially benefit from your transaction, at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support.
Three of Cups
By Kathy Wilson Florence
Available 1 July 2018 on Amazon.com
ISBN: 978-0998678122
We just found out that my Aunt Judy, Mama’s youngest sister, passed away last night from pneumonia. Please pray for my mama and her remaining siblings, but most of all, Aunt Judy’s five sons and their families, as well as her former and current husbands.
Thank you. Have a blessed day.
I chose an elephant to honor my foremothers (and fathers) from my Oliphant line. Elephants are beautiful. They are also very strong, just like mothers have to be.
Image source: Pixabay
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