(Posted by Ron)

• That the Fresh Prince of BelAir would become such an accomplished actor!
• That only the Chinese and Indian restaurants would be open on Christmas Eve!
• That Walgreens would not stock refried beans!
• That bean dip would be a fine substitute!
• That tamales, bean dip, flour tortillas and Herradura Tequila make a fine Christmas Eve dinner!
• That none of those things matters if you truly believe in the spirit of Christmas – family and all of those you love.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all!

The great (Luster) depression.

(Posted by Gayle)

Striving for more compulsively can cause you to end up with less. My father was never satisfied.  He did everything big (except save money).  By the time I was in 5th grade his thirst for more was leading to some pretty bad business decisions.  He made a mess of his business (against my mother’s pleas) and was in some very hot water financially.  We moved from our luxurious brownstone apartment into a small two flat on the far south side of Chicago.  I began attending a public school in 6th grade.  We spent 3 years in this neighborhood.

The things I remember about this period of my life are:

• Buying my clothes for school at K-Mart.
• Hoping that if I wore the same dress to school two days in a row the kids might begin to like me.  I had problems at the private school because it was obvious my family was wealthy.  Now that we were “poor”,  I was hopeful that I would fare better with the kids in my class.  I actually wanted them to know were poor.  I had enough clothes to wear a different outfit each day, but being resourceful I hoped repeating ensembles would work in my favor.
• My father laying in bed depressed because of the financial situation.  I never saw him being violent again, but he was filled with self-hatred.  I’ve heard it said that depression is anger turned inward. Read the rest of this entry »

Shiny things get tarnished, but there are ways to restore a Luster.

(Posted by Gayle)

We do what it takes to survive. As mentioned, my mom and I shopped a lot.  Chicago is famous for it’s magnificent mile.  I’ve been to only one other place in the world that compares – Le Champs Elysses.  No wonder I’ve fallen in love with Paris – it reminds me of home.  My mother, Aunt Doris and I covered every inch of that mile over and over again.  On this particular day, we had ventured to another unique area in Chicago – Old Town.

I do not still love shopping.   It was on this day the worm turned.  Read the rest of this entry »

You get to shine and glow and ultimately discover that not all that glitters is golden.

(Posted by Gayle)

We’ve all got a tale to tell. In my private practice,  a client, when sharing his or her story,  will often comment “I should write a book.”   Many of us feel that way from time to time.  The problem is that unless you are Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, The Donald, or some other celebrity very few people will really pay to hear all about your own personal drama.  We’ve each got a story to tell.  Why pay for drama when all you have to do is take a trip home for the holidays?!   I will spare you the book version of my life.  There were, however,  some compelling components woven together to create who I became and set the stage for Ron to walk into my life and sweep me off my feet.

People need to understand the impact of their childhood. Read the rest of this entry »

Build a strong cardiac muscle because your heart’s gonna get busted WIDE OPEN!

(Posted by Gayle)

The prelude to the requiem (or the calm “after” the storm.)

I had a decidedly different childhood.  I’m not sure it would classify as a “child” anything really.  Lest I sound ungrateful or cynical, let me share with you how I feel and what I think about my parents today then we’ll wander around in the past for a bit.

First and foremost I miss my parents.  My dad died in 1971 and mom passed in 2003.  I would love nothing more than to feel my father’s arms around me and hear my mother’s laugh. Read the rest of this entry »