Judy Bennett

Musings and Surprises I have left a big pottery bowl filled with red balls on my primitive coffee table after taking Christmas decorations down. It continues to make my […]

When people begin asking me at this time of year, “What’s Next for You” or “What Are Your Goals for the Next Year?” I take a pause. I have been through many different paths in my 78 years.  Setting goals used […]

I am a great admirer of Brene Brown, who has spoken and written extensively on vulnerability.  She says that “allowing yourself to be vulnerable is an act of courage.  Courage starts with showing up and all […]

One of the definitions of “strength” is “the capacity…to withstand great force or pressure.”  To many this would mean building up your biceps and thigh muscles to be able to stand as an unmovable wall against an […]

The different meanings for “balance” intrigue me as I have grappled for many years for that elusive “balance” in my own life. The Oxford dictionary says that “Balance is an even distribution of weight enabling […]

The journey of a caterpillar becoming a butterfly has become an important life lesson for me. Observing this process has taught me much about living my own life mindfully.

After the butterfly has traveled its […]

Loss. That seems too small a word when you have lost your beloved daughter to an early death. But, really, is there any word that would be sufficient?

My beloved daughter Amanda was a beautiful, vibrant young […]

For what do you want to be remembered?  Margaret Wheatley says, “My personal aspirations for legacy simplify with age.  I want to leave behind strong shoulders.  Shoulders strong enough for some to carry fo […]

Unplug?  Hearing that word, our minds automatically go to a media-free day or week or simply turning off “stuff” for awhile.  For me it goes to another place.

As far as technology goes, I have decided to make […]

Setting boundaries has been a long time coming for me.  Personal boundaries are those rules and limits we set for ourselves within relationships.  As a child, healthy personal boundaries were never modeled for me […]

I think “celebration” used to mean “perfection” to me.  It was important to me that everything be authentic and made from scratch.  I remember my daughter’s first birthday–a tree trimming party–for a one-year o […]

Dreams are funny things.  They seem to come in little pieces, as most things in life do.  The dreams that come while sleeping are a whole different matter.  They often come in huge pieces that bombard.

The dr […]

Judy Bennett Judy was born in the Appalachian Mountains to a life very much like the one described by J.D. Vance in Hillbilly Elegy.  Since then she has lived […]

My fear was that I would never find home. I didn’t know that, of course.  That unnamed hole had been there so long it just seemed like a part of me.

I had been abruptly taken from my grandparent’s home in the […]

Empowerment.  When we hear that word, I think we often think of self-help books, podcasts or pricey seminars since “empowerment” is such a trendy buzzword right now.

To me, the word has a different […]