despair : BouncebackCafe.com

An Elephant Sat On It

March 2, 2011 - Posted by Ellie

How do you regain your resilience when an elephant just sat on it?

Was it only a few weeks ago that I was jumping for joy? Indeed. But then a different kind of news came down the pike… Continue reading » An Elephant Sat On It

Busy, Busy Days on the Way to Letting Go

November 4, 2009 - Posted by Ellie

photo credit: rawheadrex

Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.

— Unknown

For the recent holiday weekend I proclaimed myself a four-day-weekend and set about doing a myriad of tasks that used to be either “he or we” projects, never mine alone… I was busy, busy, busy. I was “letting go”.

Letting Go Ain’t for the Faint of Heart

Letting go takes a lot of work and determination. It’s MUCH easier to just let things be. But I knew that moving on, transitioning “from we to me”, required doing “what don’t come easy”… and I, not someone else, needed to do the choosing: keep or let go?

It Was a Close Call

There was a point when I despaired of ever making any decisions, I just couldn’t bear to let go of anything no matter what it was. So how’d I power through? Continue reading » Busy, Busy Days on the Way to Letting Go

In a Pickle and Ready to Topple… Into Despair Or Hope? I Get to Choose

September 23, 2009 - Posted by Ellie

photo credit: Alex Barth

Did you do your 48 hours of ABC’s? I’ll show you one of mine. How about it, will you tell me one of yours?

Good Readers, take note: This may be difficult to read so avoid it if you’re feeling down; save it for another day, or never, your choice. PattiAnn tells me it’s “just a couple steps above my post Such is the Power – A Lament” which was posted shortly after my husband died.

I meant this post to be about how to transform a pessimistic perspective into an optimistic outlook; and for that purpose, I have shared some deeply personal (and usually private) feelings about my grief. I didn’t write it to make you sad, although it deals with sadness. Nor am I looking for sympathy. PLEASE no sympathy. Just good fellowship.

I wrote it to show me and anyone else who must walk this path that hope can prevail. Life goes on and I want to choose a life of hope rather than despair.

So, read on if you dare. Or skip it if you must. Thanks for visiting no matter what you decide.

Continue reading » In a Pickle and Ready to Topple… Into Despair Or Hope? I Get to Choose

Is There Such a Thing as Chaos on the Cusp of Order?

September 9, 2009 - Posted by Ellie

photo credit: kirtaph

Have you experienced “chaos on the cusp of order” in your life? How do you figure out when to take a breather and how to return with new energy?

Sunday, already in a BAD mood but boxed-in by time constraints, I tackled my piled-high desk, trying to create an orderly working-space for doing my most hated cluster of tasks – ones my husband (a cost accountant by education and profession) used to do before cancer stole him from us – THE BILLS. And suddenly, wham! I’m on the verge of despair and tears, helplessly bemoaning: “I’ll NEVER get this done, this is hopeless. I just can’t do this!”