Tag: mental
-
Tea Time with Mandy: A Pause in the Middle of the City
There are places in New York City where the noise does not disappear, but it changes character. Where urgency loosens its grip just enough to remind you that you are allowed to pause. Sant Ambroeus is one of those places. Outside, the city presses forward—crowds folding into one another beneath towering buildings, voices rising and…
-
Peace in the Storm: When Your Body Remembers What Your Mind Forgot
There are storms that roar in with wind and thunder, and then there are storms that arrive in silence—the kind that unravel you from the inside out long before you realize something is wrong. Trauma does that. It doesn’t always shout. Sometimes it whispers through numbness, fog, and dissociation—through a body that remembers pain even…
-
Tea Time with Mandy: The Emerald Chandelier Tea Room
The Taste and See That the Lord Is Good Series. Part I There are moments when God invites us to slow down long enough to notice His goodness again. Stepping into The Emerald Chandelier Tea Room in Griffin, Georgia, felt like stepping into one of those moments. The morning sunlight filtered through floral draperies as…
-
The Isolated Are Devoured
Why We Cannot Survive Without Family, Community, or the Body of Christ. There comes a moment in every life when the weight becomes too heavy, the silence too loud, and the loneliness too sharp to ignore. A moment when even the strongest among us feel the ground give way beneath our feet. It is in…
-
🔔 I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day: When Hate Mocks the Song
“And in despair I bowed my head: ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said, ‘For hate is strong and mocks the song Of peace on earth, good will to men.’” There comes a moment in every person’s life when the weight of the world finally breaks through the outer shell we’ve tried so hard…
-
When I Stopped Celebrating Halloween — and Found Freedom
As a child, I thought Halloween was harmless fun — a night to dress up, eat candy, and laugh with friends. I never suspected that behind all the laughter lurked something dark, something that would leave an imprint on my soul for years to come. Every single time I participated, it was the same story:…
-
Deliverance & Authority in Christ: When God Brought Me Out
There was a time in my life when I truly hit rock bottom — when the walls of pain and exhaustion closed in so tight that I could hardly breathe. I had just lost my sister to a drug overdose, and my heart was already shattered. At the same time, I was caring for my…
-
Comfort Foods That Heal: Nourishing Body, Mind & Soul
Life in the city can be chaotic. Between work, responsibilities, and the stressors that weigh us down, it’s easy to forget the simple comfort that food can bring. For me, there’s something deeply soothing about a bowl of hot, nourishing food on an anxious tummy—it not only fills the body but quiets the mind. But…
-
Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle While Still Enjoying Comfort Foods in the City
Over the last several years, my health has been slightly subpar due to tremendous amounts of stress—stress from work, everyday responsibilities, and most importantly, the heavy role of being a caregiver for my husband. That season took its toll on my body and mind in ways I could never have anticipated. By the time I…
-
The Power of Choices: Part Three
“I Forgive You.” Three simple words. Yet when spoken from the heart, they carry a divine weight far heavier than the stones others are eager to cast. Recently, I found myself in a deeply unsettling storm within the Christian Contemporary Music world. A well-known artist—whose name I will not mention out of respect for all…
Country Girl Gone City 