tonyroberts, Author at Delight in Disorder

From Stone Cold Hearts to Hope Bearing Feathers

Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. I've heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea; Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me. -- Emily Dickinson 1830-1886 This post is about the Presidential Inauguration. I had not planned on writing about it. I didn’t even watch it. But something/Someone compelled me to listen to the program podcast then move to my desk where I finished composing this at the stroke of midnight, January— my psychoimposed deadline for Facebook posts. You might wonder what a blog about faith and mental illness has to do with politics. politics. Hope, for one. The sign above Dante's [...]

From Stone Cold Hearts to Hope Bearing Featherstonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:31-04:00

Second Chances by Cindy Higgins

Cindy Higgins was born in the seventies as the middle child in the small city of Erie, PA. Grew up Catholic but in a family that encouraged bible reading and asking questions. I don't remember when I gave my soul to Jesus. I just feel like he always had it. I honestly debated on becoming a nun but felt pulled to be a mom instead. Had a few health problems over the years but am now able to work and have fun. Currently attend a non-denominational church with my husband and two daughters. Discovered I was bipolar in high-school after my sister was diagnosed. It's been a bumpy road with anger management issues and projects that are only half finished in my house. Luckily I have a supportive and understanding husband. I am currently blessed with the perfect life: Loving husband, two healthy daughters, a dog, cat and enough income [...]

Second Chances by Cindy Higginstonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:31-04:00

When Despair Meets Delight

When Despair Meets Delighttonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:31-04:00

Was He Only Dreaming? MLK Day Today

In the fall of 1975, I opened my fresh new Language Arts textbook and found that some pages had been cut out. I walked up to my teacher’s desk and his response was, ”I did that. It was a story about that King fellow. I don’t want you reading about some nigger who went around stirring up trouble.” Yesterday, I was talking with an elderly woman who didn’t realize today was a holiday. “What holiday is it?” “Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday,” I replied. “I swear. What do you have to do to get a day named after you? He didn’t do nothing.” This morning, I was talking to a man in his 70s about King’s legacy. “I know he preached non-violence,” he said, “but as soon as he’d finish his speeches, blacks would go around breaking into stores and stealing stuff. I don’t care what the history books say. I saw [...]

Was He Only Dreaming? MLK Day Todaytonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

Songs of Thankfulness and Praise by Christopher Wordsworth

Grant us grace to see Thee, Lord, Present in Thy holy Word; Grace to imitate Thee now And be pure, as pure art Thou; That we might become like Thee At Thy great epiphany And may praise Thee, ever blest, God in flesh made manifest. (from "Songs of Thankfulness and Praise" by Christopher Wordsworth)

Songs of Thankfulness and Praise by Christopher Wordsworthtonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

The Pandemic and Mental Health by Jason Tapscott

Our guest blogger is Jason Tapscott. Jason's work can be found on his website is jasontapscott.com You can find his two published books at Amazon, on Kindle, for 99 cents each. Right now, there are two installments in the series with a third forthcoming that he hopes to release in paperback. Writing is Jason's way of healing and processing some tough personal times. The story is all fabrication but actually based on some real events that happened in his own life. Personally, I have very mixed feelings about the pandemic since it hit in March(ish). In that month, I started working from home. Eventually, I switched jobs in August because I wanted to be a little more on the front line, as crazy as that sounds. I work as a CPS in mental health services. That means I have my own issues. In August, I started working at Einstein [...]

The Pandemic and Mental Health by Jason Tapscotttonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

A new study on how coffee affects behavior.

A new study on how coffee affects behavior.tonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

A Bipolar Blessing in 27 words.

A bipolar's blessing: What comes up, must come down. Every now and then, however, the crash occurs in safe waves and people are there with life rafts.

A Bipolar Blessing in 27 words.tonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

Out of the Darkness by Laura M.

I have a horrible confession, an unthinkable thought. At one point, I thought about ending my life. Why? Well, I’d just had a baby and my husband of thirteen years had been constantly on my case, during my whole pregnancy, about what a horrible person I was, what a failure as a mother I was, and how I cornered him with this pregnancy. What was the point of my being here then? It never occurred to me, until later, of course, that those feelings were a mix of sleep deprivation, of not having the medicine I needed to heal, of postpartum depression, and that my husband was abusive. I was breastfeeding our child and his tummy was not filling up. Plus, he was a newborn with his days and nights mixed up, and was busting out of his swaddles like Hulk Hogan. All I saw, instead of those logical [...]

Out of the Darkness by Laura M.tonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

From Mental Illness to MBA by John Witcher

Living with a mental illness is very challenging and can be very frustrating. In 1994, when I was diagnosed, the culture surrounding mental illness was much different. Many of the support groups were not as easy to access, due to technology limitations. The internet was not as user friendly, if you had it at all. When you were the person in the room with a mental illness, you typically kept it to yourself, and it was suggested that you do not disclose. With the help of organizations like NAMI, SARDAA, APSE, Vocational Rehabilitation, KEY and many others, mental health is becoming something that is easier to discuss, when in the past, it was not. In 2017, I received an MBA with honors, from IndianaTech. I remember, in the 1990’s, when I was considering going back to college, I got a great deal of pushback. I heard countless times, that it was a crazy thought. Then, I approached my [...]

From Mental Illness to MBA by John Witchertonyroberts2024-08-26T13:03:32-04:00

About tonyroberts