My Popeye

April 5, 2021

My Handsome Sailor!

Popeye and olive are hugging each other on a white background

Bob had just come off a Mediterranean cruise when I met him. While they were traveling around the world to 36 countries on the USS Saipan, he didn’t have much to do in his spare time than work out. So, he was quite toned. Being a Sailor, I decided that I had my own Popeye. So, naturally, that made me Olive Oyl.

My 18 year old self was so proud to be his girl. He was the older, very handsome man in the NAVY. And, as the years passed, I became even more proud to be his wife. He genuinely cared for people. I can only hope to live up to the woman he saw in me.

He found small rubber figures of our namesakes at an Arcade while we were dating, and they now sit on my desk. These small reminders of our wonderful love story is what gets me through my days at present. And, that’s what early grief feels like. Each day finished is an accomplishment. We need to celebrate those small victories.

To help me heal and to get through these days, I have decided to focus on our life’s journey in the next set of blogs. I have heard that so many people who have lost loved ones worry about forgetting the details of memories. I hope that writing it down will relieve that worry as well as help me to move forward with Our Love Story. '

I often counsel others, especially those going through difficult times in relationships, to remember the good times. And, I also counsel those going through difficulty to journal their days. I truly believe in the act of writing it down as a healing process. So, this focus will combine the recording of good times with getting through these difficult times.

A woman in a blue jacket and white shirt is smiling for the camera.

I am a school counselor turned counselor educator, professor, and author helping educators and parents to build social, emotional, and academic growth in ALL kids! The school counseling blog  delivers both advocacy as well as strategies to help you deliver your best school counseling program.

A man and a woman are holding hands while walking in the woods.

I'm a mother, grandmother, professor, author, and wife (I'll always be his). Until October 20, 2020, I lived with my husband, Robert (Bob) Rose, in Louisville, Ky. On that awful day of October 20,2020, my life profoundly changed, when this amazing man went on to Heaven. After Bob moved to Heaven, I embraced my love of writing as an outlet for grief. Hence, the Grief Blog is my attempt to share what I learned as a Counselor in education with what I am learning through this experience of walking this earth without him. My mission is to help those in grief move forward to see joy beyond this most painful time. 

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