Q: As much as all of us were excited when our youngest son graduated from high school earlier this year, I have been a bit reticent about the whole thing. Our youngest son is at a complete loss. At the moment, he has no future. I understand that often as not, young people barge out […] Read more
Tag Archives Speaking of Life column
Changed attitude might help manage difficult employee
Q: I have a real problem. The guy in our shop who is without doubt the best mechanic we have on staff is also the biggest pain in the butt. This guy is totally self-absorbed. It is all about him. Whatever he has or does is the best, the biggest and the most impressive thing […] Read more
Feeling of abandonment requires treatment
Q: I am not sure how attractive I was when I was a young lady,but I never wanted for male attention and when I was going through any number of boyfriends I was never alone for very long. At times, I started a new relationship before I had quite finished with the old one. It […] Read more
Doctor advice recommended before using pot to ease pain
Q: My wife and I are struggling with serious arthritis. It is like we have a race with each other early in the morning over who can get to the medicine cabinet first to swallow another tablet of Tylenol. Lately my son and his wife have suggested Tylenol is not the route to go. They […] Read more
New generation doesn’t follow traditional parenting roles
Q: I have been watching my grandson and his girlfriend for these past few years and the more that I see them the more that I wonder if the way in which the world is going is all that great. My concerns are with gender roles, and who is to do what around the house. […] Read more
Traumatic birth delivers unexpected news to parents, grandparents: what now?
Q: It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. These are, for our family, clearly the worst of times and what makes the whole thing even more difficult is that they were supposed to be the best of times. Our son and his wife gave birth to a new grandchild for […] Read more
Ability to listen to others key strategy for making friends
Q: I am not sure that I fully understand this but apparently I had some trouble during the birth of our second-oldest child. Whatever happened, the end product is still the same — our son has cerebral palsy. He can walk and talk and do most everything but he does so slowly and of course […] Read more
Assertiveness better response to bullies than violence
Q: Last week, our young son came home from the school playground with a bloody nose. This is not the first time this has happened. Apparently, two or three other boys in the neighbourhood are into bullying and using not only my son, but some of the other kids in the school as punching bags […] Read more
Learning to wait is a good way to become less impatient
Q: I am an impatient person. I don’t scream and shout or go on a tirade when I am upset but I let those around me know that I am less than satisfied with the way things are going. I fidget, pace, nag, breath with deep exasperation and sometimes clear my throat incessantly. Believe me, […] Read more
Discovering sense of identity can prevent dependencies
Q: Shortly after my youngest son was born his father was killed in an automobile accident. My son lost out on that one. He never did have a dad to follow around the farmyard, a dad with whom he could play catch, a dad who would take an interest in him or a dad to […] Read more
