Sharing insights and inspiration that happen over a cup of tea

Sharing insights and inspiration that happen over a cup of tea

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Category: Gratitude

  • Every life should be blessed with a Charlotte

    Hanging on my kitchen wall is a little plaque given to me by my dear friend, John. He found it in a quaint Irish shop in Smithville and bought one for me and one for his wife, Rose. It reads, "Sharing a cup of tea with a friend is happiness tasted and time well spent."…

  • Hope is the reason for joy, even in difficult times

    On the first Christmas, the angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds, assuring them, “I bring you tidings of great joy;” news bringing them not an ephemeral experience of happiness, but a deep, abiding experience of peace and an assurance of God’s love. “Joy is the air Christians breathe,” Pope Francis has said, and…

  • Celebrating the feast of memories and love

    As the October anniversary of my mother’s death passes, and the Feast of All Souls approaches, it is inevitable that I would recall the many wakes and funerals of my loved ones. There were particularly memorable moments at each one – some painful, some disturbing and some actually funny. When my grandmother died I was…

  • St. Paddy’s Day can be everyday with a sainted Irish dad

    Well, I missed my chance for a St. Paddy’s Day blog post in honor of my sainted dad, Eddie Clifford, but the magic of leprechauns that lived in his heart is not a one-day kind of magic, so today’s the day. I never met my grandfather, my father’s father. He hailed from County Cork, Ireland,…

  • Giving thanks because I’m drinking from my saucer

    Writers always have their favorite hangouts, places where they can observe life as it goes along its unexpected way. At one time, for me, it was the coffee shop in the local hospital, where I was spending many hours waiting for loved ones to get tested, have surgery, or recover from an illness. I’m also…

  • Entering the fall season with reflection, gratitude and a quiet spirit

    It’s funny how often we come across insights that resonate profoundly with our circumstances at different times in our lives. Today, I found one in my in-box, in the form of a newsletter, “Living in Season,” by Waverly Fitzgerald: “I feel that urge that so many of us feel in September to begin a new…

  • No piece of art is more beautiful than a child’s smile

    With Thanksgiving around the corner, and Christmas not far behind, thoughts of gratitude and giving are close at heart. For those of modest means, the holidays are also a time to be mindful of money, to keep within a budget. But let’s face it, the pressure to spend is sometimes overwhelming. While mulling over our…

  • Oh, to have gratitude like the fishes

    The stories of the saints are chock full of inspiration, so when I had the chance to speak to more than 400 Catholic school teachers recently, I decided to share one of my favorite stories, attributed to an event in the life of St. Anthony, a powerful preacher and insightful teacher. When preaching in a…

  • Make room in the pew for joy

    The man behind me in the checkout line greeted the cashier with the standard, “How are you?”                                                                              …

  • Lessons from the garden are lessons in love

    There is nothing my father enjoyed more in the spring than a visit to the local nursery. There I would watch him wander through aisles of colorful blooms and I could almost see the wheels of his brain spinning with wondrous plans for that summer’s garden. He would carefully choose a variety of plants, some…