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FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | MARCH 2024 49 Life After Loss All of us blessed enough to reside in a community such as the Four Seasons have come to enjoy the many comforts and amenities that characterize our 55+ community. While we have worked tirelessly over the past decades to ensure our present financial stability, most of us have also become more conscious of the passing of time. Writing on that fleeting commodity, psychologist Erik Erickson (1902-1994) penned the idea that the final life stage characteristic of all individuals aged 65 and over is entitled Integrity vs. Despair. What these words practically mean is that people in their later years of life have the choice of either accepting (integrating) the course of their life as it has been lived OR viewing the totality of their life's circumstances with a sense of despair. Most, if not all of us, at this point in our lives have faced a variety of painful circumstances including the death of a loved one, divorce, estrangement, health limitations, and financial setbacks. Yet we should not be totally taken aback by the presence of pain. While definitely an unwelcome intruder in our lives, the existence of pain is also an integral part of the human experience. Without its presence, we would not fully appreciate the meaning of joy and happiness. Or how it has blessed the kaleidoscope of our lives. A popular literary adage reminds us, "It's not what happens to you … but how you (choose) to respond/react to it that matters." Stephen Covey conveyed much the same idea when he stated, "Our behavior is a function of our decisions (choices), not our conditions." It's true. Life will happen. Circumstances both good and bad will come our way. The only REAL choice we have is how we choose to respond to those circumstances. Dealing with and facing reality — the truth of "what is" can bring light to the dark and hidden places in our lives … gnarled by time and a gnawing sense of inauthenticity. The truth cast by the light of illumination will bring a healing sense of what is actually absent in our lives — and in need of restoration. This is the doorway to life after loss and the doorway to the "integration" that Erickson mentioned in his life stages. And behind the doorway waiting are the wholeness, integration, and unity that is key to the human experience. And isn't that what we all really seek? Unless otherwise notified, the Life After Loss Group meets in RCN Room #3 the first and third Mondays of every month from 1 to 3 pm. If you have experienced a form of grief/loss and would like to join the group, please text/call Byron Thomsen beforehand at (909) 939- 7097 or email him at byron.thomsen@yahoo.com. ~ Byron omsen As a group, we have been delighted to be involved in an in-depth study of the Book of Ezra in the Old Testament. We have learned so many interesting facts about Ezra, as well as the strength and genuine love of God that he exhibited. The Lord allowed the Israelites to be taken captive to Babylon where they remained for 70 years. In 536 B.C., Zerubabbel, a descendant of King David, who was born in Babylon during the exile, led the first group of captives back to Jerusalem at the generous behest of King Cyrus of Persia for the purpose of rebuilding the temple there. The project was started and stopped many times because of great opposition. Eventually, the temple was completed and in 458 B.C., Ezra led the second group of between 5,000 and 6,000 Israelites back to Jerusalem at the age of 23, as well as all the treasures King Artaxerxes so generously entrusted with him for the Jewish temple and their worship. After we complete Ezra, we will begin the Book of Nehemiah, who was a young man who had a heart for Jerusalem and its protection. He went back to Jerusalem for the purpose of rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem. In spite of much opposition, he was able to complete that project in just 52 days. Sometime in early spring, we will then begin studying the Book of Esther. If any of you Four Seasons women are interested in joining a group of really fun, intelligent and godly women to study the Word of God together, we meet every Friday at 10:30 to 11:45 am in The Lodge Game Room. We hope you'll come join us. We'll be looking for you! ~ ~ Eileen Gilbert-Antoine, (951) 922-6829 or egcellent@msn.com "Believe …" Women's Bible Study

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