Subtle Signs

Recognizing miracles just takes practice.

I once read of a primitive tribe in Africa who sends each teenager out to live in the jungle alone for a certain time period.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

No Cats on the Table? What, This Table?

We have a very, very strict rule in the Ruffing household: No cats on the dining room table. Ever.

Of course, I should mention that these three cats are spoiled. They are allowed to sit on the couch and lounge on the ottoman and sleep in the bed, even wander around the bathtub whenever the mood strikes them. So these cats are not living a life encumbered by a whole lot of rules.

Just recently, I decorated the house for Thanksgiving. I spread my special Thanksgiving tablecloth out on the table and set out my floating candle centerpiece. Nice.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

Ten Things

Ten things I noticed on my way to work this morning:

1. The sky heavy with approaching rain, gray and moist, tasting of the sea.

2. A solitary yellow leaf drifting to the sidewalk on Broadway near my subway station at 96th Street. The leaf fluttered and swooped like a swallow.

3. Passengers swaying like sea grass on my packed subway car.

4. Streaks of orange—local train tracks outside the window of my express train reflecting the subway tunnel’s sulfurous light. I thought of car headlights in an overexposed photo, shooting stars.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (1)

Places That Refresh Our Souls

Is there a place that refreshes your soul, simply by being there? If so, please let me know where it is. I’m making up a plan for the next 100 places I want to travel to! In the  photos, you can see a few favorite places of mine. Can you identify any?

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

A Time to Pass It Forward   

Recently I had the wonderful opportunity to speak to a weight-loss group at the gym where I work out. It was so humbling to be able to share with them all that I have learned about proper nutrition and exercise. 

As I spoke to them I noticed many headshakes of understanding as they were able to relate to the struggles that all of us who are overweight experience.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

Penny From Heaven...Or From Harlem to the Hamptons

"I looked at all the caged animals...the cast-offs of human society. I saw in their eyes love and hope, fear and dread, sadness and betrayal. And I was angry.

"God," I said, "this is terrible! Why don't you do something?"

God was silent for a moment and then He spoke softly.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

What Can Change and Contrast Teach Us?

I remember seeing the stage musical Fiddler On The Roof when I was a teenager. I loved movies and theater, and my dad had bought season tickets to the 5th Avenue in downtown Seattle.

It was clear to me that a major theme was how daughters rebelled against their father's wishes, to choose their own happiness, rather than what tradition dictated.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

On Our Knees

I’m in Abilene, Texas, this week, helping my daughter as she recuperates from knee surgery. Arthroscopic knee surgery, ACL replacement and meniscus repair, to be exact. Christina is only 27 years old and this is her second knee surgery.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

Trees Do It

There’s a tree outside my bedroom window that has lost nearly all of its leaves. There are a few stragglers left, clinging to the tips of the otherwise bare branches, fluttering defiantly in the wind. I found myself this morning looking out and thinking, What are they waiting for?

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)

God's Plans Are Better Than Ours

Did you know that November is National Adoption Month?

Adoption has a very significant place in the life of my family. If you know my story then you know that one of the main reasons I auditioned for The Biggest Loser was my intense desire to have another baby.

I had health problems that were made worse by my obesity and doctors told me not only was it unwise to try to conceive at my weight, but it was unlikely as well.

Read more

Permanent Link | Comments (0)