Health & Wellness

Findings: Holy Smoke!

jbloustein — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 08:58:48 -0600

Did you know that in the Bible, there are 139 references to the healing power of God’s love?

Indeed, when Jesus walked on earth, he brought a two-pronged message of good news. First, he preached the message of forgiveness, offering imperfect people reconciliation to God and the promise of eternal life.

Secondly, he healed people. Physically, emotionally, relationally and spiritually, Jesus healed people.

The Healer

jbloustein — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:17:44 -0600

I was trying to pray when it happened. Desperately.

Dark feelings I’d been holding back for days like some terrible tide, feelings of worthlessness and exhaustion, overcame me.

I forced myself to keep reading the Psalm I had in front of me, but all I really wanted to do was give up. Just close my eyes and never open them again. Anything to make this unnameable despair, this sadness beyond sadness I couldn’t seem to shake, go away.

In Harmony

jbloustein — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:09:51 -0500

Not long before the terrible visit to my doctor, my husband, Michael, and I bought a farm.

The farm was in Tennessee, 2,000 miles from Los Angeles and a world away from the music industry Michael and I had spent most of our lives in.

We’d lived the proverbial rock ’n’ roll lifestyle, the endless cycle of touring, recording, more touring. But we longed to settle down.

A Prescription for Aging

admin — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 11:06:00 -0500

Dr. Sherwin Nuland, M.D., the author of The Art of Aging, shares some tips for a healthier life.

1. Exercise your mind.
Read anything, from your daily paper to the works of Dickens or Karen Armstrong. Do crossword puzzles, visit museums, sign up for a class at the YMCA or local college.

2. Exercise your body.
Join a gym. It may be challenging, but you'll find something you enjoy—walking, swimming, even dancing. You'll be amazed at how every success leads to another.

Did God Really Give Me Justice?

admin — Tue, 01 May 2007 13:12:00 -0500

An early dream of mine was to be a college baseball coach, and it came true. Then Michelle walked into my life. We married, settled in Pennsylvania where we met, and I concentrated on teaching. We had two boys and a girl. Today I know there's no better dream than family. I believe this more than ever since the arrival of our fourth child, my son Justice.

The Santa Story

admin — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 12:56:00 -0500

It's amazing to think I've been doing my Santa work for more than a decade now. No, I don't make toys way up at the North Pole. I'm a different kind of helper: his ghostwriter.

Our "partnership" began many Decembers ago. I'd been asked by the editor of the newspaper where I worked to write an article about Christmas traditions and Christmas history.

Dogs of Peace

jbloustein — Wed, 06 May 2009 08:53:25 -0500

Graduation Day! The assembly room at Children’s Village, a New York residential center for at-risk teens, was crowded with spectators.

All eyes were on the graduates: four large dogs—two yellow Labs, a black Lab, and a golden retriever—and four wounded veterans who’d served in Iraq and Afghanistan. My own gaze kept shifting, though, to the 12 teenage boys from the Village who, for the past year, had been training the dogs for this moment.

The Power of Hope

admin — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 13:18:46 -0600

Gazing at my haggard visage in the bedroom mirror that morning in 1991, I didn't know which was worse—the way I felt or the way I looked.

In a sense they were one and the same, each a reflection of the other. I had just undergone a punishing round of chemotherapy following a double mastectomy for breast cancer, and doctors had warned me that I would probably have to undergo a second round.

I looked decades older than my 33 years. My skin sagged and my face was ashen. Dark circles shadowed my sunken eyes.

Blind Dog Has His Own Seeing Eye Dog

mcherkezian — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 11:51:24 -0500

This story was originally posted on Gimundo.com

Kicked the Habit

admin — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:04:21 -0600

Accompanied by my four-year-old son, Eric, I was on my way to the store to buy a pack of cigarettes.

I knew I shouldn't be doing this. I was going through a rough time financially and could barely make ends meet, especially for bad habits such as cigarette smoking.

Still, I'd been a smoker for 13 years and could not stop.

As I drove into the store's parking lot, on impulse I turned to my son and blurted out, "Oh, Eric, do something to make me quit smoking!"