November 17, 2015 Crisis Support
“A Wolf at the Table: A Memoir of My Father” is Augusten Burroughs’ first full-length memoir. It is a departure from the humorous and wry tone from his “Running With Scissors,” but it likewise chronicles the author’s survival of a…
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Love is blind because it is more a chemical reaction than a visual phenomenon. Yes, our sight plays a big part in falling in love with someone, but that explosive feeling of intense love is mostly shrouded with the sweet…
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The Federal Government has no business in regulating civil matters such as marriage, unless it is for the purpose of resolving conflicts between states and citizens of different states. There is absolutely no Constitutional authority that even intimates that our…
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Thanksgiving 2009 My mother was born Virginia Ninette Fenton on December 12, 1924. She spent her childhood during our country’s Great Depression as the firstborn of a large family. She was the oldest of ten. She often told me of…
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March 5, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
If you are a new military spouse, welcome to your new world! That soldier, sailor, airman, marine or coastguardsman stole your heart has a competing interest and commitment that you might have trouble adjusting to. Military people forfeit much of…
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February 1, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
Prolonged separation during deployment can stress even the strongest marriage. Sometimes even the anticipation of that dreaded departure date can cause stress fractures as the spouse who will stay behind becomes morose and withdrawn. It is natural to resent the…
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January 27, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
Military marriages are special, because they are subjected to greater strains. In some ways, the civilian spouse also “marries” the military. Lengthy deployments and the accompanying separation require a high level of resilience and a recognition of how temporary absence…
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January 27, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
The tearful goodbyes and stressful scene at the hangar or on the pier is just a sad memory. Your spouse is now well on the way to Afghanistan or on the high seas heading for the Persian Gulf. You now…
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January 18, 2015 Marriage and Divorce
The secret to a long lasting marriage is one thing: adjusting to inevitable change. That secret also has a corollary. Resistance to change can bring struggle, and the struggle comes when one or both of the partners in a marriage…
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There seems to be growing support for allowing gays to serve openly in the U.S. military. For that to happen, Congress will have to repeal the so-called “Don’t Ask – Don’t” tell legislation of 1993. That legislation was passed as…
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November 25, 2013 Crisis Support
Grief is the experience of loss and change in one’s life. It is the psychological process everyone goes through following the death of a loved one, a broken relationship, the loss of a job, etc. How grief is processed following…
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September 19, 2013 Communication
Is chivalry dead? Was it ever really alive? If it did exist, it was a male-constructed dysfunctional way to treat women. The term “chivalry” comes from the French term “chevalier,” meaning “gentleman.” As an ancient code of behavior it encompassed…
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September 8, 2013 Communication
Why do people still smoke? As part of a sociology class project some years back, one student researcher contacted five people who currently smoke cigarettes. The people included (1) a female executive secretary for a senior official at an educational…
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