Change – Page 2 – Melissa Schlies

A Year Later: Five Things I Wish I’d Known Pre-Pandemic

A year ago this week, I drove a half hour north to meet a friend at Barnes and Nobles. When I got there, I pulled into a parking spot just as my phone “dinged.” I had a text. I put the car in park, turned off the engine, then grabbed my phone. Tony’s name showed up in a little grey box on my screen. I clicked on it, and there it was: The first sign our lives were going to change because of COVID. In his text, Tony told me that as of the following week, all the offices where [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-03-08T00:33:40+00:00March 8th, 2021|Categories: Acceptance, Change, Routines, Social Distancing, Waiting|Comments Off

For The Parts of Your Life on “Pause”

Have you ever been watching a show or a movie, and had to stop it before it was finished? Maybe your popcorn was done in the microwave, your friend or partner had to grab a drink, or at the worst time possible, you had to go to the bathroom. You, or the person holding the remote, hit “pause.” Now, most times, it’s not a big deal. In five or ten minutes, you’re back on your couch, holding your popcorn, and watching your show. But every now and then, something happens and you can’t get back. The phone rings and it’s [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-02-13T20:44:19+00:00February 15th, 2021|Categories: Acceptance, Change, Hope, Waiting|Comments Off

No One Prepared Us for Married Life in a Pandemic

"You don't marry someone you can live with, you marry the person you cannot live without.” — P.S. I Love You For longer than any of us have been alive, there have been movies about love. For centuries before that, there were plays. Acted out stories that have made us think and even dream about romance. Ones that have shaped the way we view relationships and marriage. Only, None of them prepared us for marriage in a pandemic. For almost eleven months, Tony and I have been working from home together. Not only that, but we’ve moved into our first [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-02-06T21:19:35+00:00February 8th, 2021|Categories: Adulting, Change, Conflict, Health, Hope, Marriage, perseverance, Relationships, Social Distancing|2 Comments

The Secret to Keeping Your New Year’s Goals

Every year, the United Nations publishes a World Happiness Report. For many years now, Denmark has been at the top of that list. And I remember, a number of years ago, an article came out saying that Denmark is the happiest place to live, because Danes have lower expectations for their lives. This claim that expecting less so you’re pleasantly surprised with what you get, has since been refuted. It is now said, Danes expect free healthcare, free education, longer maternity/paternity leave, and in general have a better work life balance. Which lately has me wondering—is it possible that they [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-02-01T00:00:51+00:00February 1st, 2021|Categories: Acceptance, Balance, Change, comparison, Depression, Failure, Habit Making, Practice, Routines, Self Care, Success|Comments Off

Finding What Feeds Us As the Pandemic Lingers

A few Sundays ago, Tony and I had a bad mood day. I’d had a terrible dream the night before, waking up with this awful feeling I couldn’t shake. And, as we work from home, we hadn’t left the house in too many days to count. We wanted to get out and do something—only because of the Pandemic and cold winter weather, our options were basically shopping, or shopping. Whenever we used to feel like we needed a break from life, pre-pandemic, we always hit the road. Though we knew our dilemma was basically champaign problems, we felt so discouraged [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-01-18T16:13:59+00:00January 18th, 2021|Categories: Balance, Change, grief, Habit Making, Health, Loneliness, Mental Health, perseverance, Social Distancing, Travel|Comments Off

“This Isn’t The Story I Wanted”

“I didn’t want to go online to meet someone.” A friend said to me once. I could see hurt and sadness in her eyes. When everyone else seems to naturally “bump into” their soulmate, it feels awful to have to work at it. It’s like you’re that one sock that comes out of the drier without a match. “This wasn’t the plan.” A former student said to me, when the job she’d counted on, fell through. We often don’t know how much we’ve invested of ourselves into our plans, until they fall a part. Especially when those plans have to [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2021-01-08T21:58:16+00:00January 11th, 2021|Categories: Acceptance, Balance, Change, grief, Health, perseverance|Comments Off

Looking Back: What I Learned in 2020

For all of us, 2020 will go down as the year of COVID. Memories of people stocking up on toilet paper, empty shelves at the grocery store, and masks becoming a regular necessity, are now forever a part of our story. The pandemic has been the overarching atmosphere in which we’ve seen people band together and fall a part over issues such as racism, health care, politics, conspiracy theories, and even restrictions over COVID itself. The pandemic has been the overarching atmosphere in which we’ve seen people band together and fall a part... Yet in the midst of all the [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-12-23T18:18:18+00:00December 28th, 2020|Categories: Acceptance, Change, Character, gratitude, Learn, perseverance, Social Distancing|Comments Off

When Christmas Carols Sound Sad (& What to do With All Our Feelings this Week)

One night recently, Tony and I were on our way home from doing—what else—holiday errands. The sky outside was dark. A Christmas carol that is one of our favorites was playing on the radio. And about halfway through the song, Tony said, “For some reason, this song sounds sad this year.” It’s amazing how much of our own experiences we bring to music, or any type of art for that matter. But when Tony said these words I had to agree. In years past, this particular song has sounded as triumphant to me as Easter morning. As hopeful as kids [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-12-18T19:37:23+00:00December 21st, 2020|Categories: Acceptance, Change, Christmas, Depression, Faith, grief, Holidays, Hope, Loneliness, Social Distancing|Comments Off

Change is Coming

About a month into my freshman year of college, I was recruited by a local youth pastor to volunteer in his youth ministry. Two months later, after I fell in love with the students and was invested in the program, he announced he was leaving. Suddenly, my volunteer role began to get a whole lot bigger. There are times, you don’t see change coming. Whether good or bad, it seems to fall out of the air and land right in front of you, interrupting your path. At times, altering it forever. Thankfully though, this isn’t the only way change occurs [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-11-08T18:20:12+00:00November 9th, 2020|Categories: Balance, Change, Creativity, Preparation|Comments Off

This Holiday Season, Don’t Be Afraid To Go Your Own Way

When most people think about Halloween, they think about carved pumpkins. Kids in costumes asking for candy. And, they probably think about almost everything spooky. I think about Chinese food. Now, I realize that may seem random. So I will explain. But first let me say, Holidays don’t always have to be what they’ve always been. This is something my mom taught us growing up. By doing so, whether she knew it or not, she created for us some incredible memories. And, it all began with Halloween. When I was a baby, my mom became a Christian. Not the go-to-church-every-Sunday [...]

By Melissa Schlies|2020-10-23T15:38:58+00:00October 29th, 2020|Categories: Change, Christmas, Creativity, Freedom, Habit Making, Hope, Lead, Learn, Love, Love Learn Lead, Making Decisions, Social Distancing|Comments Off

For The Parts of Your Life on “Pause”

The Secret to Keeping Your New Year’s Goals

“This Isn’t The Story I Wanted”

Change is Coming

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