Also, seven years ago I expanded my network of friends by starting a daily blog. Every morning, including today, I’ve written about my heart, my son, my passion for the healing power of groups, my song-writing, my cats, my hopes, my fears, this speech — whatever helps gird me and prepare me for the day ahead.
I am girding and preparing myself for a day without the earthly presence of Deb, friends, family members, and other shining lights who have passed.
Girding and preparing myself includes listening to music I love. Yesterday, when I was walking amongst the creatures and environs around me, I was reminded of a musician I loved when I was young — Jacques Loussier, who played jazz versions of Bach pieces, like this one:
As always, girding and preparing includes sharing my gratitude to all, including YOU.
Yesterday, when I was brave enough to visit the Broken Tail Rescue cat adoption center in Cambridge, Massachusetts, I noticed this description of two of the kitties there:
Luna is learning how to be brave by following her brother’s lead, says the description.
I think Luna is learning a lot — she’s up front and seems fearless. I also think her brother, Ray, is learning from her.
I’ve been learning how to be brave my whole life, which I’ll be describing in a 5-minute talk at my 45th college reunion in two weeks. Learning how to be brave includes:
following good role models,
feeling the fear and doing it anyway,
letting go of harsh judgments,
having faith in your process,
accepting all your feelings,
being kind to yourself and others,
carrying supportive people in your heart and mind,
committing to the here and now,
learning from everything, and
telling your story authentically.
I’ll be using those “Learning how to be brave” guidelines when I’m bravely telling my story authentically in front of hundreds of people, soon.
I was learning how to be brave when I took these other photos yesterday:
Harley is learning to be brave by being up off the floor.
While I’ve already written several previous blog posts with “Leave” in the title (here, here, here,  here, and here), I couldn’t leave well enough alone, mostly because
Because I don’t like to leave everything up to chance, I asked my son — who is leaving soon for India and then Edinburgh — to help me create a relevant image for today’s post.
If you don’t like posts with lots of photos, you should leave now. If you don’t leave, you might notice that many of yesterday’s photos have to do with today’s title, in one way or another.
When I think a meeting is bullshit, I want to leave.
Now that we’ve found our new home by the sea, I never want to leave.
My son Aaron will soon be leaving on a jet plane.
Batman probably wants to leave the cat shelter as soon as possible.
Because I need to leave the house soon, I’ll leave it up to you to notice the connections with “leave” in the rest of my photos.
I wonder how many readers will leave this post before all the photos load?
Before I leave my blogging for the day, I want to leave thanks for all who helped me create today’s post and — of course! — for YOU.
my blog posts are often inspired by a photo I’ve taken the day before?
I like it when colors match unexpectedly?
one of our cats is named Oscar and when my son picked him out at a shelter over ten years ago, Aaron said, “That’s a really nice cat but Oscar is not a good name for him!” but after Aaron sat with the cat in the back seat on the ride home, Aaron declared, “Oscar is the perfect name for this cat”?
“How People Change” is a topic  of extreme interest to psychotherapists.
“How People Change” was also  the topic that my therapy group — filled with people who are very interested in change —  discussed yesterday morning.
Therefore, “How People Change” is the topic of today’s post.
I, a person, change every day. However, I do not change certain things — like  including recent photos in my daily blog.
Because I’m not sure how WordPress is changing the size of that photograph on your current screen, here’s what I wrote about “How People Change” in yesterday’s group:
Everybody changes in different ways.
Flexibility is important!
Changes we choose are much easier to tolerate than changes we do not choose.
We deal with change a lot in this group because people come and go.
After the group, I changed the “angel card” in that description of change, just for the sake of change.
What do you think of that change, people?
Do you see evidence of how people change in my other photos from yesterday?
The reality is that I recited/sang these lyrics from the David Bowie song “Changes” in group yesterday.
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
(Turn and face the strange)
Ch-ch-changes
Don’t want to be a richer man
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
(Turn and face the strange)
Ch-ch-changes
Just gonna have to be a different man
Time may change me
But I can’t trace time
See and hear how David Bowie changed singing “Changes” as time changed him (here, here, and here on YouTube)
Jealousy is one of those “negative” human emotions which can make people uncomfortable.
Yesterday, the members of my therapy group discussed jealousy without judgment. Any jealousy about that?
I doubt there’s any jealousy about my handwriting and drawing abilities. This is what I wrote, yesterday, about jealousy:
Jealousy is a human emotion. I am afraid of other people’s jealousy — I’m afraid the feeling is going to hurt me. But other people’s feelings and thoughts cannot hurt me.
What makes jealousy worse for you? Lack of self-care. Cognitive distortions. Fear. $ Money.
What helps you deal with jealousy? Self care. Recognizing it’s just a feeling. Leaning back and letting jealousy go by me without hurting me.
What are your thoughts and feelings about jealousy?
Do you have jealousy about any of my other photos from yesterday?
Comparisons — the thief of joy — can often lead to jealousy.
Any jealousy about my having a wonderful son, who is turning 19 today and whose YouTube video has 90,000 views this morning?
Any jealousy about all the gratitude I have for everyone who helped me create this post and — of course! — for you?
The Year(s) of Living Non-Judgmentally 