Strength Needed

During my lifetime, several challenges interrupt life's balance. These occurrences take their toll on my mind, body, and spirit in different ways. Reflecting on these moments leads me to ask a series of questions.

What troubles me now? 

My past traumatic events lessened my physical strength. My husband's passing cluttered my mind and brought sorrow into my soul. I felt like I was drowning in grief.

What do I do to find comfort? 

I turn to my faith with hope in my heart. My family, close friends, and long-distance writing communities support me. 

How do I manage the grief that brings exhaustion, nightmares, and anxiety? 

Faith and hope intervene because I am in need.. I turn to scripture, The Lord is my strength and my defense; He has become my salvation." (Psalm 118-14) I listen to faith-filled music, such is a new collection I found, "Songs for Comfort".

How do I build strength so I can restore my body, mind, and spirit?

I am eagerly trying to build strength through physical therapy for a fractured ankle. Nine months after my husband passed, I decided to engage in bereavement counseling. The communication between the bereavement counselor and me is one of comfort and determination to minimize grief. This is my self-help for building spiritual and emotional strength. Positivity and optimism strengthen my mind.

Each day, I wake to the song, Restore My Soul, that brings my one word into the light of day. I begin the journey to total wellness of the mind, body, and spirit. There is never a full day of strength building, but I am determined to walk the road to restoration and renewal.

I am thankful for the inspiration that comes through reading. It provides me time to pause and look out the window at nature's sunset, lighting the gray sky. Building strength is one day at a time.

Kahlil Gibran stated: “Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars." 

I have felt the scars of sorrow, but I must walk the spiritual journey to navigate reality. I am ready!

Strength's Journey

strength resides

inside hearts

filled with faith

inside minds

yearning for

renewal

inside me

waiting to

release grief

(c) CVarsalona, 2026

Thank you to those who understand.

*********

I am grateful for the following writing communities

Leigh Anne Eck

host of today's Spiritual Journey

illuminated my thoughts on her topic strength.  Please join me as I share my thoughts with  Leigh Anne and my colleagues of Spiritual Journey Thursday Community.

Click here.

*********

Day 5, March 5, 2026

 12th year with Two Writing Teachers

*********

Poetry Friday 2026 hosted by author and poet, 

Karen Edminston.

She is using a line from Arthur Sze's poem Residence on Earth to create an original poem, "One Way to Live". Click here to read Karen's poem and other blog posts.

created by Margaret Simon

GrandGirls Bring Sunshine

Regardless of gray skies, my little grandgirls bring sunshine and good cheer every time they come to visit.  Last weekend was grandma-sitting time. What a surprise to be greeted not only by two of the three little grands but also by the sun itself, with its warming touch. 

Inside the home, is a gift of love for the grandgirls and a fashion show from them to me.

Gift of Love

spring arrives

colors pop

flowers bloom

fashion trend

brings love and 

flowered joy

(c) CVarsalona@gmail.com

I found a quote by an anonymous donor that made me smile.

"Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting."

In return, the little grandgirls (8, 6, and 2 1/2), bring sunshine every day, even when the sky is gray.

Day2, March 4, 2026

 12th year with Two Writing Teachers

This slice was meant for Day 3 but I fell asleep with my laptop on my "lap". 

Navigating Reality-Then and Now

Dear Slicer Friends,

Life is full of bumps in the road that challenge the heart and cause anxiety. There have been small bumps and huge ones in my lifetime, but I weathered the traumas along the way with my husband for 48 years until last year. 

I am sharing the beginning of a lament poem that I wrote last year. A sudden illness that we thought was from weight loss with Ozempic led to a traumatic series of decline that occurred within less than a month. I felt as though I was walking on the edge of darkness. 

(c) CVarsalona, 2026

Loss and grief are difficult emotions to handle amongst the ordinary and not-so-ordinary happenings of last year. Each stage of my bereavement journey took me through dark passages and weird dreams. In the beginning, everything seemed unreal because of the unexpected diagnosis that echoed like a foghorn. My husband's body was ravaged by a rare, incurable form of cancer in the pancreas. The continuous decline and sleepless nights broke his spirit. We hardly had time to deal with the big picture with his constant infusions and falls. Then, the end drew near. The family felt the sting of what was to come. Friends in the community formed a team. Dinners were delivered. Prayers were ongoing. Family was supportive. Devoted priests and staff offered spiritual support, a lovely memorial mass, and a luncheon for all those who attended the ceremony. The beginning part of my journey was surreal.  Thankfully, writing seems to bring a sense of calmness to my mind, spirit, and body, so I write to help the sting of loss go away. 

Thank you to those in the Two Writing Teachers community who listen and comment.

Day2, March 2, 2026

 12th year with Two Writing Teachers

Navigating Reality - 2nd Year

Dear Slicer Friends,

There have been many times when my life has felt fragile and uncertain. Since last year at this time, I have walked an uneasy spiritual journey filled with bumps along the way.

 

This Slice of Life month of daily messages will be dedicated to my one word, restore. Restoring my soul and renewing my heart will be my goal through writing prose and poetry.

Bear with me as I find support and calmness along the way. 

restore what was

revive my broken heart

love never dies

 (c) CVarsalona, 2026

Day 1, March 1, 2026

12th Year of Slicing with Two Writing Teachers

Thoughts on a Journey of Self-Discovery

On Day 21 of Laura Shovan's February Poetry Project, Marilyn R. Garcia invited writers to explore the mystery between sadness and joy in their lives or the world around them. She challenged writers to write a poem about a time or period of life where the coexistence of sadness and joy was strong for you.

It is difficult to believe that it has been 10 months since my husband passed away suddenly. I found the above digital artwork that I created years ago. My journey since then has been one of unbelief, to anxiety, to grief. But it has also been a time of discovery. I tackle questions, such as who am I and where am I going.

My goal is to restore my soul, mind, and body. Plus, I realize that it takes many miles of walking on my spiritual journey to find peace. With sunlight not making regular trips this winter, grey clouds seem to agitate my mind. Recently, I wrote a blog post about holding the sun close to my heart. As the song, Restore My Soul, states, "revive my heart" is what I need.

I started this blog post with a proposed prompt to write a poem about a time or period of life where the coexistence of sadness and joy was strong for me. During the winter season, I have felt the sadness of loss and grey skies along with the joy of being with family, especially my three little grandgirls. The prompt by Marilyn R. Garcia asks us to take the lyrics from one of the Beatles' mysterious songs and make them make sense.

Keeping in line with the sorrow and joy of winter without continual sun is a mystery to me. Winter doldrums have brought unrest. The ending line of my blackout poem is what I would like to bring an optimistic point of view during this bereavement time.

Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles

Here comes the  sun ,  doo-doo-doo

Here comes the sun

And I I say, "It's all right"

Little darlin'

It's been a long, cold onely , l winter

Little darlin'

It feels like years since it's been here

Here comes the sun , doo-doo-do

Here comes the sun

And I say, "It's all right"

Little darlin'

The smiles return ng to the faces

CVarsalona, 2026

A simple prompt helped me realize that sorrow and joy can coexist. If I hold on to hope and faith, my journey may not be as bumpy as it has been. I look forward to a smile opening each day.

Writing grounds me!

✎

I thank Irene Latham for her recent blog post with an inspiring ending line to her poem "Watermelon, you"-:"Teach me how to hold the sun when the day is anything buy joyful".

winter's sun offers

both darkness and light with love

mystery of weather

CVarsalona, 2026

✎

In addition, I am adding my draft poem for today's Poetry Sisters' February Challenge with Sara, Tanita, Tricia, Mary Lee, and Laura. I choose to use the 25th Poet Laureate of the USA, Aurthur Sze's First Snow poem as my mentor text. I offer a Golden Shovel draft poem with the strike line: the world of being is like this gravel.

dreams melt like the

falling snow in our swishing world

that holds the challenges of

of my swirling life - being

part of continual uncertainty is

unmeasurably worrisome - like

rabbits jumping from here to there this

journey reminds me of winter's icy gravel

(trying to melt what is in my way)

draft-CVarsalona, 2026

The companion photo will be created at a later time.

✎

I join the Poetry Friday Roundup with our host, Margaret Simon, educator, author, poet, and friend. Margaret is offering us three lovely poems she penned for the Ethical ELA Open Write.

created by Margaret Simon

Holding the Sun

As usual for these winter days, the sun seems to be outshone by gray skies. While this weather pattern seems odd, it is a reality, something that I need to adjust to this season. As I walk the spiritual journey, I always seek shreds of wisdom. It just so happened that Irene  Latham shared her blog poem at Live Your Poem this past Friday. One line resonated with me, and so I kept it in my heart.

"Teach me how to hold the sun when the day is

anything but joyful." 

These lines will stay with me as a reminder to be optimistic in the face of challenges while maintaining hope.

I know how to teach,

but how do I teach me?

Is there a way to understand how?

Perhaps I should reach out  to

winter's doldrums - hold

all that the season offers in the

middle of my hand when the sun

does not shine. When

the sky provides the

the gift of light on a certain day

there is

an expectation that anything

can open my heart, but

only with the spirit of joyfulness.

draft CVarsalona, 2026

Slice of Life

February 24, 2026

Join me as I come into the light on a winter's day.

at

Two Writing Teachers

Waiting for You

In the depths of my dreams,

I stop somewhere waiting for you.

Roaring winds whip across snowpiled

areas. I feel your warmth rekindling

flames of fire. Then, quickly

in the corners of darkness,

I awaken, waiting for you.

Sadly, on this cold winter night,

you are no longer here beside me.

Softly, like a dancing snowflake,

I whisper, "I shall not stop waiting

for you in my dreams."

draft CVarsalona, 2026

Photo by Devin Hartnett, Winter in West Virginia

Dedicated to my late husband, Richard

❆❆❆❆❆

Join me at Susan Thomsen's blog, Chicken Spaghetti, for the Poetry Friday Roundup. Susan is hosting this weekend, so she invited everyone to write a poem inspired by a prompt from David Lehman. The poem should start with the final line of Whitman's "Song of Myself", I stop somewhere waiting for you. Susan added her own poem, "Flurries of Winter" for our reading pleasure.

Winter Gray & Crystal Healer

Days pass by. The sun remains covered by ethereal clouds of gray. Cold temperatures negate the ability of walkers to take a winter walk while admiring winter's beauty. I sit watching the snow lessening while leaving patches of earth’s greenery for me to enjoy.

Something nags at my heart. Is it grief, sadness, or both? Is the shadowed sun grasping for a glimpse of spring or the feel of warmth coming from its rays? Where is there a heart healer? At the stroke of morning, a new February Poetry Project prompt is offered by poet/author/educator, Margaret Simon. “Choose a crystal to use as a muse for your poem today”. Like Margaret, I chose a shadorma poem format to write my thoughts.

Crystal Heart Healer-Mango Calcite

I hear tales

of your healing strength

soother of 

body, mind,

soul, bringing positives

to my broken heart

©CVarsalona, 2026

It is said that Mangano Calcite uplifts the human heart and body. The next time I am near a jewelry boutique, I shall browse through the crystals to find this one. For the time being, I shall listen to the beautiful, calming song, Restore My Soul, that I found to embellish my one word, "restore".

It's Friday the 13th and the sun finally turns the sky to a positive shade of sunshine rather than this morning's grayish color. I now turn my thoughts to Poetry Friday with the talented and creative poet, Robyn Hood Black, who is hosting today. It looks like it will not be an unlucky day with Robyn at the helm. If you go to Robyn's blog post, you can see some very charming products she creates at .