Empowering people to make strengthening choices
Emotional distance rarely announces itself. It creeps in quietly. Conversations become more functional. Laughter is less frequent. You still care, but something feels shallower and less alive. Many people assume this kind of distance means something is wrong with the relationship or, worse, with them. But I’ve found it helpful to view emotional distance as […]
Many couples genuinely want to honor one another but, unfortunately, end up hurting each other instead. They try to be thoughtful, avoid certain topics, and make sacrifices. And yet, resentment grows, intimacy fades, or conversations feel increasingly tense. The problem is not a lack of goodwill but rather a misunderstanding of what honor in marriage […]
One of the quiet struggles many thoughtful people carry is this tension: How do I honor others without disappearing in the process? If you grew up valuing kindness, responsibility, or emotional awareness, you may have learned early how to be considerate of others. You learned to listen, accommodate, and smooth things over. Over time, those […]
The temptation to fix When relationships feel strained, most of us default to the same strategy: figure out what the other person is doing wrong—and try to get them to change. We offer advice they didn’t ask for. We repeat ourselves more forcefully. We explain our position again, hoping clarity will finally land. Or we […]
When the problem feels like it lives “over there” Most relationship trouble doesn’t begin with cruelty or bad intentions. It begins with a familiar, almost invisible conviction that the problem is over there. Perhaps we feel misunderstood. Unappreciated. Disrespected. Something in us stiffens, and before we know it, our energy shifts toward defending, correcting, or […]
In my last post, I posed some questions to ponder at the end of this year. Here is the story of a couple who faced these questions together. It was the evening of December 30th when Jack lit the last candle on the dining table. Emily laughed softly—only Jack would try to make a year-end […]
As we approach the close of another year, I find myself asking more than the question, “Where did the time go?” I’m asking something deeper: What have I learned? Who have I become? How am I different today than I was 365 days ago? Of course, it is so easy to notice the passage of […]
As the holidays approach, I find myself reflecting on why this season matters so much to me. It’s not simply the decorations or traditions—although I enjoy these. It’s something quieter, deeper, more human. The holidays invite us to pause. To breathe. To remember who and what matters most. And perhaps, most importantly, to reconnect with […]
