Category Archives: Healing Arts

Health Perspectives with Karen Gilroy

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Every human being is the author of his own health or disease. ~ Buddha

karen gilroyThere is a new blog talk radio show called, Living a Richer Life that will be premiering on Thursday, February 6, 2014. The first show will be featuring one of our We Write Steamboat authors, Karen Gilroy, author of Nourishing the Healer Within.

Gilroy has her Master’s of Science degree in Holistic Health and she will be speaking with listeners on the power of the body to heal itself and the interconnectedness of the mind, body and spirit. In order to have good health, she says “all three must be in balance.”

When one of these aspects of our lives is out of sorts, symptoms of illness may occur. Gilroy contends that we need to listen to the messages our bodies are sending us because “the inner intelligence of the human body is constantly assessing and analyzing all the cells.” When we are not well, we need to rest which allows our bodies do the work it needs to do in order to self-heal. Positive results will follow.

Gilroy will also be focusing on how the mind plays an important role in the self healing process on the February 6th radio show. I encourage our readers to listen in to this 45 minute talk to learn more about how to be in charge of your own health, and understand the body’s natural healing abilities. Gilroy says “You can stop fearing illness and lead a more fulfilling life with mind, body and spirit in balance.”

Living a Richer Life with hosts, Dr. Charlotte Grant-Cobb and Ervin (Earl) Cobb will air every Thursday, featuring a diversity of guests who will have inspiring and motivational things to say to Americans who are looking for positive change in their lives. Listeners should tune in at 9pm from the East Coast, Central time zone at 8pm, 7pm Mountain Time and 8pm Pacific through this link.

Bookmark it! http://www.blogtalkradio.com/richerlife

Look forward to your return to All Things Fulfilling tomorrow! This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

How Sweet the Sound

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Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” – Proverbs 16:23-25

Some of the most powerful words I heard as a child came from a person who had great significance in my life but she was someone other than my parents. I can hardly wait for you to meet her.  I will introduce you to her in my memoir when it is published this spring.

Her words to me went something like this:

Fanny speak

Oh…how sweeeet the sound! Enough to make anyone feel they are the bestest! I’ll always wonder if the person who I have included in my life story had any idea what impact her simple words  meant to me as a little child?

The words we speak to one another truly matter because they have the capability to influence and inspire us, help us to realize our potential and fill us up with love and all kinds of things that bring us fulfilling feelings. Words such as these can be better than a snug wrap around someone’s shoulders. http://awarmembrace.com.

January is National Mentoring Month, so on this last day of the month and because it is Film Friday, I would like to share a link that lists some of the best movies that have insight into how an ongoing relationship of learning, dialogue, and challenge between two people can change lives. http://growingleaders.com/blog/great-mentoring-movies/.

I look forward to having you join me again on Monday on this space where independent thoughts, words and views are all part of the business.  This blog is brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Shoes Bring Back Memories

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We can not change our memories, but we can change their meaning and the power they have over us. ~ David Seamons

Antique photos can be very stirring because some times they dredge up old and difficult memories we’d rather not think about. Yet some images have the power to help us recapture feelings that are as sweet and fulfilling as thoughts of vanilla pudding.

saddle shoesWhen I came across this photo of saddle shoes and white cotton socks, my recollections of standing at the bus stop on my first day of school came flooding back. My saddle shoes and white socks went everywhere together, like my twin sister and me. One was never without the other – kind of like the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that were in our school lunchboxes. I recall how the socks felt around my ankles – flimsy, insufficient and weak like my body. I can’t associate them with any warm feelings. My sister by my side was my strong, fuzzy security blanket.

When I look at the picture, I can even remember the precise smell of the white shoe polish our classmates used to keep their shoes looking new and unscuffed. Mine never really needed to be polished. My shoes didn’t get knocked about or hard use. In fact, just outgrowing a pair of shoes was a big accomplishment.

This image of saddle shoes has brought back an entire childhood worth of memories. Now six decades later I look forward to sharing my story. My hope is that parents who have kids dealing with childhood illness will find something comforting and hopeful in the memoir. Most of all I want the book to bring to a smile to some faces.

Did you own a pair of saddle shoes? If so, you must be a baby boomer. Did your shoes have band of black, brown or navy blue leather at the instep? What thoughts of childhood do saddle shoes stir up for you ? Are they happy memories or difficult?

This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com. Do return tomorrow to All Things Fulfilling.

You’ve Got to Love It

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Humor is the great thing, the saving thing.  The minute it crops up, all our irritation and resentments slip away, and a sunny spirit takes their place.  ~Mark Twain

Why is it that people think that those who practice a little faith have no room for humor?

In my opinion, I think it would help all religions to “lighten up.” After all, those who walk through the doors of a church, synagogue, temple or other place of worship on Sunday mornings are looking for insight and understanding into their lives – and sometimes if we look at things from a more light-hearted perspective it helps us to unload our burdens.

Every week  our minister manages to incorporate  humor into his sermons, and still does a fine job of getting a very meaningful message across. I got the biggest kick out of him during the Christmas season. As the congregation stood to sing  “We Three Kings,” he said “I want you all to listen up. We are going to sing verse #1 and #5 with the chorus part and verses #2, #3 & #4 without. Otherwise, the three kings will arrive with the gifts and go on back home, and we will still be singing this song.”

Reverend Tim, thank you for bringing your good-natured humor into the church. God gave us the gift of laughter and you, a good sense of humor. I am glad that you use it! It makes going to the United Methodist Church on Sunday mornings that much more inspiring and fulfilling.

Just sayin’… from underneath more than 225 inches of white fluff this season in  Steamboat Springs, Colorado….

advice & snow

See you tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling. The place where independent thoughts, words and views are all part of the business. This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Same Image, Different Feelings

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We suffer primarily not from our own vices of weaknesses, but from our illusions. We are haunted, not by reality, but by those images we have put in their place.” ~ Daniel J Boorstin

Isn’t it strange how one photo shown to two different people illicit different feelings?

gym uniformsDo you remember these physical education class uniforms from the late nineteen-sixties? Mine was yellow and skirted. When I see this picture the first thing that comes to mind is a time in my life when I felt I didn’t measure up. These feelings come from what I thought this uniform made me feel like when I put it on as an adolescent girl. As an adult, I know differently – we can take charge of our own emotions and cultivate positive feelings within ourselves.

If you showed this gym uniform from the same era to my husband the first thing that would come to his mind would be buoyant feelings of a time in his life with “stardom and awards.”

Isn’t it strange how people traveling down the road of life at the same time can have two very different experiences? That is what makes reading personal narratives so interesting! Sometimes memoirs are fascinating because we can so closely relate to the characters or the story and other times we do not relate at all, but we find it intriguing to see life through a different heart. Yet somehow through books and stories we often connect with others on some level.

Coming this spring will be a new publication, a personal narrative, authored by me, the blog mistress of All Things Fulfilling.  This blog is brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Spirited Young Children

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Children are the hands by which we take hold of heaven.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

joyfulchildI love the spirit and innocence of young children. Few have reason to doubt the world until they reach emotional maturity, which according to Katherine Lee in this article, http://abt.cm/Hk0mge, is somewhere around  the age of nine.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful, as an adult, to have a child’s spirit and have the ability to let your joy shine through from the depths of your soul not caring about what others think of your most delightful thoughts and actions.

I love the book we shared yesterday on All Things Fulfilling, by Trevor Boehm, because I think there is wisdom in the words he shares with respect to living in the world feeling personally fulfilled. If you didn’t read yesterday’s blog, scroll down to it.

On Monday, we will be sharing some tips for people who feel they are not living up to their God given talents, and wish they could be doing something else in their lives or careers. Please join us!

This blog brought to you by http://www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com .

Thoughtful Thursday: Opening Up Discussion

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trevor boehm quote

Happy Thoughtful Thursday! Today, I would like to share an interview that I had with Ali Boehm earlier in the week. She owns an award-winning healing business called “Kneading Hands” Massage. She is also the driving force behind a book, authored by her brother, Trevor.  The Boehm family published “Louie’s Saxophone” to help people struggling with mental illness.

Here is our interview:

Sue: Today is the first of many Thoughtful Thursdays to come on All Things Fulfilling. I continue to be inspired by your family’s story. The loss of your brother has been turned into a positive mission.  More than a year ago, I featured your brother Trevor’s award-winning book “Louie’s Saxophone” on All Things Fulfilling and I would like to feature it once more. http://bit.ly/1auIRSD

In a few weeks you will be participating in an event at Bermis Hall at Colorado College sponsored by the National Alliance of Mental Health. You will be sharing “Louie’s Saxophone” which has the potential to help many people. Tell me  more about the event.

Ali: On November 14th (at 6:30 pm) in Colorado Springs, CO I will be a speaking out, sharing our family’s experience at the National Alliance on Mental Illness. It will be an evening of story and song called Silence No More. People will also be reading poetry and expressing themselves through the power of dance. Kathy Brandt and Max Maddox will also be sharing their book “Walks on the Margins: A Story of Bipolar Disease.”

Sue: What will you will be specifically speaking about?

Ali: This time when I speak at the NAMI event, and now that more time has passed since the loss of my brother, I will be reflecting on what I think Trevor would be doing if he was still here with us.

Sue: Tell me what purpose you feel Louie’s Saxophone plays in helping people with mental illness?

Ali: That no one is alone. The book, in a gentle way, opens a door to talk about a sensitive subject matter. I believe that my brother’s struggles began at age 8, and a children’s book becomes a family place for education at a very young age.

Sue: What has your family learned about the power of books to change lives by  publishing Louie’s Saxophone?

Ali: People believe in the written word.  A book creates a space for reflection and gives power to legitimize the healing process. Initially we thought we’d do a pamphlet, but a book has more credibility.

 Sue: How does it make you feel to know that you are helping others by sharing the story Trevor left behind?

Ali: Humbled. The book is powerful and it puts me in a position that facilitates discussion. I do not have all the answers, and sometimes that is scary. But I can provide and find resources.

Ali: Where should people who are struggling go to seek help? Can you give me a few resources?

Sue: Ali, It’s been a good day if by publishing this interview on-line if we can help even a single person to know that they are not alone and they can open up about their own depression or sadness. Best to you with the NAMI event, I am so proud that you are part of We Write Steamboat networking group for independent publishers . You are sharing an important story.

This blog brought to you by www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com. See you tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling.

Lessons Add Up to Nitty Gritty of Story

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tissueflower1There are always flowers for those who want to see them  ~ Henri Matisse

I love those words from Henri Matisse, and in them there is a lot of wisdom. We can almost always find the positive in any situation if we look deep enough. Sometimes it takes a retrospective perspective to find out what difficult moments in life are supposed to teach us. But there are morals to be learned in everything we do, even if it is nothing more than teaching us we are stronger than we think we are or that we have survival skills and have made it through what many thought we couldn’t.

Last night I shared Matisse’s words at my public speaking class as I slipped back into my childhood for a few moments and demonstrated how to make tissue paper flowers – an art project I learned at age eleven as a junior Girl Scout.

There is a personal anecdotal story with life lessons that go along with making the paper flowers. Things I learned at age 11 that helped me blossom and grow into the person I am today. If I shared more of the story with you now it would be a spoiler for my upcoming publication.

But, if you understand the essence of Matisse’s adage, you will comprehend a wee part of what my memoir is about. I’ll keep you posted on its progress. The lion’s share of the work is already done. Now we are getting down to the nitty gritty.

Reliving an art project from Junior Girl Scouts

flower 2

flower 3

Look forward to seeing you tomorrow on All Things Fulfilling. The blog of www.CornerstoneFulfillmentService.com.

Film Friday: Patching Up Families

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“Remember laughing? Laughter enhances the blood flow to the body’s extremities and improves cardiovascular function.” ~ Patch Adams

Happy Film Friday! Today’s featured movie is a throwback to 1998. Do you remember the film Patch Adams patch adams bookfeaturing Robin Williams?  The movie brought big smiles to a lot of faces, including sick children.

Did you know Patch Adams is not a fictional person? He is a doctor with a bigger than life personality – also a social activist, clown and an author. He also helped develop the Gesundheit! Institute in West Virginia. The Gesundheit! Institute is a “project in holistic medical care based on the belief that one cannot separate the health of the individual from the health of the family, the community, the world, and the health care system itself.” 

Patch adams house-callsThe Gesundheit! Institute does global outreach, and it is in the midst of planning a  Teaching Center that “will bring together artists, medical students, care practitioners, parents, and reformers to design positive ideas of health care systems, and ways to implement these ideas,” according to their website.

If your family hasn’t spent much time together lately due to the demands of life, mend things up by watching Patch Adams together, you’ll be in stitches. Robin Williams’ performance is wonderful – I highly recommend this film. Click here for info and ordering Patch Adams

Visit http://patchadams.org/campaign to read more about the concepts in holistic healing that are gaining in popularity all over the world, thanks to the Gesundheit! Institute.

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Have a good weekend. Return to http://www.allthingsfulfilling.com on Monday!

Grow as you Age

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“Art is not a part of life, it is not an addition to life, it is the essence of those pieces of us that make us fulfilled. That give us hope.” ~ Hasan Davis

The most inspiring people that I have crossed paths with in my life time have been people who never stop growing emotionally, spiritually and educationally. I’ve been particularly impressed with the large base of very active retirees in this community of Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Many, many seniors well into their eighties continue to do volunteer work, which they say “keeps them vital .”

The other day, I stopped by on business to Casey’s Pond, the new senior living facility in town. The first phase of the project is just days away from opening. In all the hubbub of activity, I ran into the developer Charles Gee. He was so kind to spend a little time talking with me.

Our conversation led to art, and Gee mentioned he is a big “proponent of the concept of art and healing.” The developer proceeded to show me a book of plans and pointed out wall nooks that have been designed throughout the building to showcase permanent installments. “Not all, but much of the art, “ Gee said, “will come from talented local artists.” The state-of-the-art facility is beautiful, by the way.

After I left the building and walked toward the car, I began to think how quality senior living facilities endorse bringing a diverse range of programs to the residents so they can continue to be actively involved and have the best quality of life possible. According to studies, all things that are culturally stimulating affect longevity positively.

If you wish to read more about using art to enhance the lives of seniors, here is a great blog. http://bit.ly/19xWHXC.

That’s the good news for today! It’s all I’ve got at this moment.

October 3 three

Casey’s Pond Senior Care Facility. Opening October 2013

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