Cheryl Richardson's Blog, page 19

Let me call you sweetheart

It wasn’t just a few things that happened all at once. It was many things. Email went down. Someone at the door repeatedly ringing the bell. An important call that needed to be answered to avoid getting lost in “automated menu” hell. A friend in need on text. And a last-minute request to reschedule a construction project that already had people in place ready for action.

Who is that woman I thought to myself as I walked past the mirror in the hallway? This cool-as-a-cucumber gal handling the cha...

The culmination of a career

From the moment the thump, thump, thump of the background music started, I could feel a stirring in my stomach. As the beat grew stronger, the energy followed, moving up my spine and landing in my chest. I was watching a documentary on Netflix about Jennifer Lopez who, at fifty, was getting ready for what she considered the culmination of her career thus far – the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

“My whole life I’ve been battling, battling to be heard, to be seen, to be taken seriously,” she says as sh...

A daily dose of inspiration at hand

My friend Mary is visiting from London this week and while driving in the car yesterday, she reminded me of a YouTube video I shared with her more than six years ago that she’s listened to every single morning since. It’s thirteen minutes of comfort, inspiration, and optimism.

If you listen, it’s guaranteed to lift your mood.

I’ve shared it with you before and you may have missed it (or forgotten about it). Or maybe you’ve used it every day, too. It’s a powerful way to reorient your thinking an...

Which door will you choose?

For more than two years I’ve glanced at an armoire in my office and thought to myself, I have got to clean that thing out. It’s a tall, three-door cabinet from France that I bought as a gift to myself when I decided to convert my traditional office into a sitting room more than ten years ago. In the armoire, I placed all my work-related items – office supplies, file boxes, computer, etc., so the room would be a cozy, elegant space for both myself and guests.

Over time I stashed more and more stu...

Don’t give up

Last week, after the tragic shooting in Texas, I posted something from Moms Demand Action on my Instagram account, inviting followers to make their voices and choices heard. Not long after, a couple of readers who have followed my work for a while started arguing back and forth with each other in the comment section of the post. This went on for hours until one of them finally deleted the rant.

As I watched the fight ensue, I thought about how, for a few years now, the media has warned of a civi...

Time for a change

Summer has arrived in spring and it’s expected to soar past ninety degrees again today. As I walked around the newly planted deck garden this morning, I looked for signs of life after yesterday’s heat. The bright yellow dahlias were still standing tall, their round faces beaming like happy little suns. The white alyssum blossoms that surround the mandevilla to protect it against aphids, filled the air with their sweet-smelling joy. And the vermillionaire, a favorite because it summons the hummin...

Homecoming and the Super Flower Blood Moon

This is the time of year when the birds are full of song, the turkeys are doing their mating dance in the backyard, and the wind carries the scent of lilacs and apple blossoms through the kitchen window.

Sometimes, early in the morning, I close my eyes and listen. I listen to the wind, to the cawing of the crows, to the scratchy calls of the bluejays, and to the melodic sounds of chickadees and goldfinches. As I deepen my breath, I notice a soft breeze brush my cheek and the warmth of the sun on...

The birth of something good

All week long I’ve felt the rumblings of anxiety in my system. As hard as it is sometimes, I welcome it in. I want to be a safe place for messy feelings to rise and release in their own time.

There’s so much going on in the world right now. Climate crisis. The war in Ukraine. The political polarization of America. And the potential loss of bodily autonomy for women. With all that’s happening at once, I often wake up braced for the next crisis of the day.

Fortunately, I have somewhere to turn – a...

You are beautiful

Our “Self Care by the Sea” retreat is happening this weekend and we’ve already taken the plunge – a beautiful experience. In that spirit, this week’s blog is a reminder of the power of beauty to heal, restore, and unite. Enjoy… and see you next week!

~*~ You are beautiful ~*~

I woke at sunrise to find translucent clouds of puffy air drifting over steel blue water before vanishing in the rising light. On the days when I find mist floating above the reservoir behind our home I feel like the luckie...

Healing a special kind of loss

He was tall for a cat, with long legs and a silky, sleek body that went on for days. He could often be heard howling “helloooooo” in the middle of the night as he roamed the house with his favorite toy – a small stuffed bear – in his mouth. One weekend, when Louise Hay came to visit, he opened her bedroom door at two in the morning and went in to have a look around. The next day Louise said that when she heard the intruder and discovered it was our little gray boy, Poupon, she invited him in to ...