Processing Grief

I’ve tried writing this blog post about a million times.

I’m trying to write either a personal post or something covering what’s been going on this past week in the news. Last week, I covered Weight Watchers’ new teen program, and while that (unfortunately) is still going forward, there’s other concerns on my mind.

On Valentine’s Day 2018, 17 innocent people lost their life at their high school.

For those far away, spectating the event and media whirlwind following, it’s hard to know what to say or do in the event of a tragedy. I felt compelled to write something to help you guys speak to your teens about what happened in Parkland.

For coverage of the event and discussion about where to go from here, I recommend Philip DeFranco’s video on the shooting. If you are against cursing, just a heads up that he does curse- in regard to the Mark Dice tweet- but his argument is sound and he never discusses the shooter’s name, background, or shows his photo.

Using this video as a backdrop, you can use Fuller Youth’s blog on processing school shootings to talk about the event. The first tip includes prompts for questions to ask, to help dissect the incident, and process what this means for us going forward.

Fuller also has a blog post called Good Grief that discusses the process of grief. If your teen, or you, are struggling to process grief, this article can help you. For a nonreligious article, check out the Dougy centers post on grief and teens. Debroah Kenney also has an infographic that will help you plan this discussion with your teen.

It feels so confusing, so painful, to have to talk about this again. Gun control is a public health issue and should be addressed. Talking to your teen about this gives them a safe space to air their feelings, to feel validated, and to speak with you about what happened. And, God forbid, what to do in the event of their school being attacked.

In the end, you know what’s best for you and your family after this. I wish you peace, healing, and comfort in this awful aftermath. I send all of you my love.

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November Recap (I missed you!)

It’s been a while, beans!

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. It’s been a long, rewarding month for me. I’ve been doing a lot of brainstorming when it comes to this blog and I think I’ve got a good amount of ideas of where I want this to go.

Since it’s been so long since we last saw each other, why don’t I give you some quick updates on what’s been going on my side of the screen. In the comments below, let me know some of the highlights of your November! I’d love to hear it.

Legally Blonde

My first and last show at my University has come and gone. It was a fun three months of blood, sweat, and tears to work with a company to put together such an amazing show. We sold out every single night, and my family was even able to come on closing night!

An interesting thing that this company does that my other school’s company didn’t is they require actors help with strike. From 10:45pm to 2:30am the next day, I got to flex my tech theatre muscles for the first time in months helping take down the BEAUTIFUL set.

Blonde was a wonderful way to end my time in undergrad and I’m lucky I had the time to do it.

Christmas Walk

My town does a Christmas walk the day after Thanksgiving. In recent memory, I’ve only missed it once and that was because I was in A Christmas Carol a few years back. It’s our town’s way to represent all its small businesses. It starts with Santa lighting up the tree that stands in the middle of our downtown area, and then we’re free to go about and explore what goodies the shops have set up for the occasion!

Mom had gotten some delicious samples of infused balsamic vinaigrette at a networking event she had attended a few weeks back. My Dad, looking for ways to flavor his food without using salt, wanted to give it a shot and I wanted to see what it was like. (Disclaimer: I’ve spoken with the manager of this store, and asked about employment opportunities. But that was a result of the experience and I’m not being paid to say the following).

Olive ‘n’ Vinnies was bustling when we walked in. We were greeted immediately by one of the owners. He walked us through some of the vinaigrettes they offer.

I was skeptical about balsamic being infused- not that I didn’t think it was possible, I just didn’t know what kind of taste to expect.

We started with the espresso infused balsamic and beans, I LOVED it! It was so yummy. The mouthfeel was great, and the espresso blended into the balsamic well. I also enjoyed their raspberry, and of course, their lavender flavor.

I loved this little store and I’m looking forward to going back. I’ve got less than 20 days left of undergrad, and I hope my mini bottles of lavender and espresso balsamic will tie me over!

Aren’t they cute?!

It was great to spend time with my family. We didn’t have to prep a lot for Thanksgiving (my cousin hosted us), so I got to walk my beagle girl and chill out with my Mom for a while.

Selfie by the tree Santa lit 🙂 

“Back at the ranch”

Now I’m back up at school and I have more free time than I did before break. Finals are coming up in a week and a half, but until then I picked up crochet in hopes to get away from screens a little bit more.

I’ve also started a sourdough culture. I explained this on Instagram, but my Mom makes an amazing sourdough bread stuffing every Thanksgiving and Christmas. My major must have rubbed off on me, because I realized while helping my Mom cook that I could make my own sourdough bread. So now I have a small culture in a large mason jar, getting ready for Saturday when I’ll give baking a shot.

Graduation is soon and my senioritis is strong. I can’t wait for the next chapter of my life to start.

Tell me how your Thanksgiving went in the comments below! Try any new recipes?

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