I have done no postings to my blog in recent months for a variety of reasons. It has been a time of deep reflection about my life, service, and helping others. I have been:
- Responding to and re-balancing after the passing of my mother in October at age 90.
- Evaluating the purpose and value of Marriage Transformation.
- Assessing the state of relationship and marriage education in the world generally and my role in it specifically.
- Exploring what creative projects to do and pursuing some of them.
- Wondering about and trying to understand: What are the needs? How do I meet them or find others to partner with to meet them?
I’d love to say I have come to amazing conclusions! But I’m still in a state of questioning and exploration. However, it is time for me to be in communication and to share a few things.
Helping Others: Concerns About Young People and Relationships
Please look at these informative links and determine: What can you do to help, no matter how small? Who needs to see these resources, and you can share them?
https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/thetalk (The Talk: How Adults Can Promote Young People’s Healthy Relationships and Prevent Misogyny and Sexual Harassment)
http://sites.middlebury.edu/middmag/2012/03/15/gender-violence/ (The words we use that perpetuate problems….)
http://fightthenewdrug.org/ (The Issue of Pornography)
Helping Others: Spiritually-Based Articles
While I haven’t been blogging, I have been writing articles occasionally. Perhaps you might find them helpful and can share them with others. I’ve been sharing about forgiveness, backbiting, soulmates, marriage, and more. Here is a link to the list: http://bahaiteachings.org/author/susanne-m-alexander
Helping Others: Spiritually-Based Courses
For the last 4 years I’ve been leading a team delivering relationship and marriage courses online through the Wilmette Institute (http://wilmetteinstitute.org/ourcourses/marriage/). We’ve just added parenting in the mix too. As people get busier and busier, we keep trying to get the courses shorter and shorter! We welcome people of all faiths and relationship statuses to come participate and dialogue. The courses are designed to help people do practical application of spiritual principles in their lives.
Helping Others: Premarital Couples
In a world where couples often feel scared about marriage and especially divorce, I’m available to help couples before engagement (and after) know their strengths, address their weaknesses, develop certainty about marrying or not, and building confidence before approaching family to talk about marrying. https://marriagetransformation.com/educationalcoaching/
Feedback:
Every company and everyone offering services these days is asking for feedback. We are all now tuning it out – it’s too much to take the time to respond to them all. What I notice in my work though is how handicapping it is to function without facts. How can I know what the needs are in order to meet them? Does someone’s withdrawal from participating mean a course content is not on target, or their life just took a different turn? What is helpful and what is not?
I am persevering, but it’s frustrating operating in a vacuum. I hope you are all out there building strong, happy, healthy relationships and marriages. I pray for all of you regularly. Please be in touch with me as you can…and please keep reaching out with helping others!
Loving greetings,
Susanne Alexander
susanne@marriagetransformation.com
Photo Credit: Susanne Alexander – A Reflecting Owl in the Yard of Our Home