[This is the true story of the darkest few months of my life. I hope and believe others can learn from it. It revolves around my daughter Anna, and Anna has reviewed and given her consent for me to post each of the parts in this series. It is her desire for others to learnContinue reading “The Almost-Suicide of My Daughter, prt. 1”
Category Archives: RELATIONSHIP STUFF
Who’s going to call me princess?
My wife teaches in Davison. Several years ago she was teaching 2nd grade at Central, Davison’s largest elementary school. Eric Lieske, current Davison Schools superintendent was principle of Central at that time. Eric had just been promoted to Assistant Superintendent. The announcement was made one day at the school and my wife noticed that oneContinue reading “Who’s going to call me princess?”
Things that are normal
thefallencleric.com is all moved over to the new server. Thanks for your patience. People struggle to know what is normal. It seems everyone freaks out if they find they are not normal in some way, and yet no one wants to feel they are normal in every way. After eighteen years of working with people,Continue reading “Things that are normal”
The feeling of being valuable
The feeling of being valuable — “I am a valuable person” — is essential to mental health and is a cornerstone of self-discipline. It is a direct product of parental love. Such a conviction must be gained in childhood; it is extremely difficult to acquire it during adulthood. Conversely, when children have learned through theContinue reading “The feeling of being valuable”
Forgiveness vs. reconciliation
Forgiveness happens inside of you. You can forgive someone all by yourself, with no involvement at all required from the person you are forgiving. We all must forgive because it is through forgiveness that we let go of anger, pain, resentment, and other negative feelings towards another person which are eating us alive. So weContinue reading “Forgiveness vs. reconciliation”
Three ways to enhance your marriage without going to counseling
Keeping a marriage healthy isn’t that difficult. Counselors get paid a lot of money to help you do this, but there are many things couples can do for free or very low cost that will make a big difference. Here are my top three. 1. Buy John Gottman’s book, The Seven Principles for Making YourContinue reading “Three ways to enhance your marriage without going to counseling”
Living in peace
This is one of the world’s most popular photos. The burning man is Thich Quang Duc, a Buddhist monk who burned himself to death in June, 1963 to protest persecution of Buddhists by South Vietnam’s Catholic government. Photographer Malcolm Brown won a Pulitzer Prize for it. President John F. Kennedy said of the photo,Continue reading “Living in peace”
On Being a Non-Anxious Presence
Ultimately all you really have to give to another person is yourself. And that is enough. Presence is the most powerful force in the universe, humanly speaking. When I go to hospitals to visit sick and scared people, they already know I can’t fix them and they don’t expect me to. What they really needContinue reading “On Being a Non-Anxious Presence”
Marriage Danger Signs
I was on NBC 25 News this morning doing a segment about signs that you may be dangerously close to divorce. My remarks were based substantially on the work of Dr. John Gottman, who has probably done more research on marriage than any other person in the country. I highly recommend his books.
Introverts, your life is calling
This post is for that 30-40% of the U.S. population who are introverts. [Not sure if you’re an introvert or an extrovert? Take this online assessment to find out.] Yep, I’m writing to YOU. It’s an extroverted world in many ways, isn’t it? That’s why you feel so uncomfortable so much of the time. ButContinue reading “Introverts, your life is calling”
Temp Arbor 