Spread Your Sunshine

Reflecting on the celebration of a great leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s quote “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” reminds me of a March 2017 conversation I had with my friend Jessica Muroff. She said, “I have time for nothing but love.” She explained, “if I allow myself to dwell on certain challenges, they will be all-consuming. Instead, I choose to show others love.” That conversation was life-changing. While I had previously strived to be positive, there were times that I dwelled on the negative and felt angry. While human, reflecting back, I allowed a dark Eeyore cloud to depress my mood when I could have focused on the positive. Following the conversation with Jess, I decided that I, too, have time for nothing but love. Identification of Internal Cheerleader & Naysayer One of the ways I identified to show people love was to determine my personal hero who excels at it, Dr. Laura Osteen, and the opposite who does no...

From a young age, my Grandma, like many others, encouraged a hand-written note for most life events - to show gratitude, sympathy, thoughtfulness, celebration, and a host of additional emotions and occasions. At her encouragement, this art- form was used to connect with family and friends, both locally and across the miles. As an attorney, this practice continued. Cards and tokens of remembrance were sent in celebration of bar passages, trial victories and partnerships, to lift up mentees struggling with the profession, and to remind others that they brighten this world by the positive change they effect every day. They were sent out of genuine concern and love for others. An unintended consequence is that they made my practice of law successful. The following is why. Social media and electronic communications are powerful tools for broadening communications and superficially learning about others, an alternative news source. They are not effective ways to deepen wo...

At the beginning of the year, I went to the gym. Not exactly a novel January 1st idea. The workout was noteworthy, however, because I did not go to start losing the ever-elusive “10 pounds,” a past go-to New Year’s resolution. I went for mental health and happiness, one of my 2019 focuses. Last fall was exceedingly busy. The packed schedule from September through November is always a challenge. In 2018, though, the addition of awesome professional opportunities and a baby tipped the scales. To save time, I quit the workouts enjoyed since middle school to exclusively focus on the workload of my then three-person law office. What was then unknown to me, however, is that I did not create additional time, I worsened my situation. Although physical benefits are most-often associated with exercise, physical activity has significant mental health benefits, including stress reduction. Since I unwittingly eliminated a major stress-relief outlet, stress had nowhere to go, bottling-u...