Latest news with #reconnection
CBS News
10 hours ago
- General
- CBS News
How a quiet Wisconsin high school senior used her art to connect with her classmates
Waunakee, Wisconsin — According to many of her senior classmates at Waunakee High School in Waunakee, Wisconsin, 18-year-old Molly Schafer was a loner. "I haven't talked to her in years," one student told CBS News. "Not a lot of kids did hang out with her," another said. That wasn't always the case. Back in elementary and middle school, before her social anxiety kicked in, Schafer said she was much more engaging. "There was a connection there, at some point," Schafer said. "...And, I don't know, I really wanted to just talk to them again, or be seen again." That longing for connection, is a common high school lament. But what is really interesting is that Schafer didn't blame her peers. She didn't sulk. Instead, she took it upon herself to reconnect in a most unusual way. Just about every day, for hours a day, Schafer would climb to a loft in her garage and try to paint her way out of her isolation by creating portraits of all those students she used to know. She made 44 such paintings. She put about 13 hours into each one, for 600 total hours of work. She then presented them to the students to keep. "The time and effort that she put into that is incredible," one student said of the painting she made for them. Although the reviews were rave, the paintings also evoked some of remorse. "All of us feel a little regret for not paying more attention," one student said. Said another: "I wish I would have made more relationships with some kids that I didn't talk with." Molly said the feeling is mutual, and hopes other students, and adults, learn from her experience and actions. "You can't go through life thinking that you don't have friends because they don't like you," Schafer said. 'Because that's not the case, people aren't thinking that hard about you. It's all in your head. You just have to try."
Forbes
19 hours ago
- Forbes
The Benefits Of Traveling With Your Parents As An Adult
mum and daughter on holiday at Florence Dome getty Whether you spent your childhood heading off on roadtrips and trips to Disney World or you were a family that didn't do all that much traveling together, traveling with your parents as an adult has the power to strengthen and even reboot your relationship with your parents. 'Taking a trip with your parents as an adult might sound like the setup for a sitcom episode,' joked Veronica West, psychologist and founder of My Thriving Mind , a website packed with therapy tools for mental health professionals. 'Still, it can be one of the most healing and surprisingly fun ways to reconnect, especially if your childhood vacations were limited to the backseat of a car.' Here are the unexpected benefits of adult children traveling with their parents, according to psychologists and health care professionals: 'When you travel together as adults, something interesting happens: the old parent-child dynamic gets a soft reboot. You are no longer the sole one who clogged the sink with gunk, and they are no longer alone who yelled about it. You are travel companions,' explained West. 'You are navigating maps together, making it through group tours together, and freaking out together when you lose your hotel key overseas. It is shared anxiety, shared snacks, and, if you're lucky, a shared bottle of wine.' For those who never had a family vacation as a child, the first trip can be a reunion and a fresh start. 'You get to discover new things about each other—that your dad has a secret talent for negotiating prices on souvenirs, or your mom has a secret talent for finding the best pastries in any town,' added West. 'Those are the things that create new layers in the relationship, ones that are grounded in humor and curiosity, rather than in old habits and unresolved fights over someone leaving the light on.' 'If you didn't make the best childhood memories growing up, travel lets you connect on something other than memories of your childhood or reunions, where the one thing from 2004 comes up,' explained West. 'Instead, you're building new memories—ideally with less yelling and better snacks.' You build a foundation for later in life 'As a senior homecare expert, I've seen how adult children often reconnect with their aging parents only in moments of crisis—when a fall happens, a health scare occurs, or care decisions need to be made,' said Christian Bullas, owner of Senior Home Care By Angels Corporate. 'Traveling together before those moments arise can shift that dynamic entirely. It creates space for bonding, understanding, and even healing that's hard to come by in day-to-day life.' You connect in new ways 'I've heard countless stories from clients who've gone on trips with their adult children and come back with a renewed sense of connection,' explained Bullas. 'Conversations flow more easily outside of the home. You get to see your parent not just as a caregiver or authority figure, but as a person with stories, preferences, and vulnerabilities of their own. That understanding can be crucial, especially as families begin discussing future care or aging plans.' According to Bullas, for families who didn't vacation growing up, traveling as adults offers a rare chance to rewrite that part of the family story. It's not just about sightseeing, it's about reconnection, empathy, and creating new shared experiences that matter more as time goes on. You're removed from traditional roles 'When the scenery is new, no one is automatically the person who pays the bills or reminds someone to eat vegetables, and this novelty gives parents and adult children room to meet each other again without the automatic baggage of the past,' said Dr. Daniel Glazer, clinical psychologist and co-founder of several health technology platforms, including US Therapy Rooms. 'Shared sensory moments such as navigating a busy night market or tasting a dish neither of you can pronounce fire the memory circuits that store autobiographical scenes, so the holiday becomes a vivid reference point that belongs to both of you.' You will get to know them better 'The road also invites a more symmetrical adult relationship. On neutral ground, you might watch your mother bargain with a hotel clerk or see your son work out a train schedule, and you start to notice competencies that daily life tends to hide,' said Dr. Glazer. 'Family systems research shows that this kind of perspective taking softens the parent-to-child hierarchy and supports mutual empathy, which in turn lowers the baseline tension that can color everyday conversation.' According to Dr. Glazer, figuring out logistics together, handling delays, and laughing at small mishaps builds what psychologists call shared resilience, and this predicts stronger attachment security when future stress appears. It will build emotional capital Dr. Glazer says that there is a developmental gain for each generation when traveling together as well. For parents, the trip can satisfy the need for generativity because they pass along stories or skills in real time while also feeling valued for their experience. For adult children, the same journey often clarifies personal identity, since seeing a parent operate in an unfamiliar setting reveals traits you might carry forward or consciously leave behind. 'The memory of standing side by side at a mountain lookout becomes emotional capital; when conflict arrives later, you can both return to that mental image, and it tends to dampen physiological arousal, which makes reconciliation easier,' said Dr. Glazer. 'In this sense, a single shared trip can rewrite the narrative, reinforce the attachment bond, and leave both parties with a portable antidote to future loneliness.'
The Sun
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Ronnie O'Sullivan marries Footballers' Wives star Laila Rouass just 10 months after split
RONNIE O'Sullivan has tied the knot with Footballers' Wives actress Laila Rouass. Last week The Sun revealed that the pair rekindled their relationship ten months after splitting. 1 They've now announced they're married as Laila shared a snap of their low-key wedding. She wrote on Instagram: "Palestinians have taught me so much, most importantly to honour human connection, make love your motivator and to keep refreshing it. So l suppose after almost a year was one way of pressing the refresh button. "Ok... so it wasn't was fully booked. "It was Cable Street in Shadwell where I was born and where my heart belongs. It's where in 1936, local activists along with the Jewish community gathered together to demonstrate against the planned fascist BUF marchers. "The Battle of Cable Street was used by my father as an example of how a community rooted in justice, can bring we all have a duty to fight for the freedom and rights of others. "The East End is the land of the immigrants. Its vibrancy, diversity and working class roots is something I treasure. I was born there, I was educated there, today I was married there and I will be buried there because my roots are my roots. "Free Palestine "Mrs O'Sullivan."
Fox News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Suzanne Somers' widower finds romance with late wife's 'Hollywood Wives' costar
More than a year after Suzanne Somers' death, her widower, Alan Hamel, is dating again. Hamel recently reconnected with Joanna Cassidy, Somers' former "Hollywood Wives" costar, whom he told Fox News Digital he has known for more than 45 years. "Joanna was a guest star on 'The Alan Hamel Show' in Canada in the 70's," he explained. "She was a great guest, and it was a dynamic show, and we liked each other, not romantically, but mainly with respect. Both of us were married at the time." Hamel married Somers in 1977 after they met in the late 1960s while working on the game show "The Anniversary Game," and were married for 46 years until Somers died. Hamel said his producer, son Stephen Hamel, met Cassidy at a film screening recently, "and after a long conversation, suggested to Joanna that she and me would get along and should meet. Stephen did not know we knew each other." "We got together and I told Joanna I'd never been with an 80-year-old," he said. "She replied that she'd never been with an 89-year-old. But it was certainly age appropriate. Joanna is extremely accomplished. She is easily the hardest working and most active actress in Hollywood for well over 50 years."' During the production of "Hollywood Wives" in the 1980s, Hamel said he ran into Cassidy many times. "It was very cordial," he added of the meetings on the set. Somers and Cassidy costarred in the 1985 miniseries, which was based on a Jackie Collins book. It also starred Anthony Hopkins, Candice Bergen and Angie Dickinson. Hamel also praised Cassidy as a mother and for her fundraising work for first responders. "She is No Hollywood BS and we laugh a lot," he said. "During Suzanne's last few days, she told me twice to 'don't mope around. Live your life. We will see one another after you cross over.' I'm fortunate to have Joanna in my life. Most men would love to have a Joanna in their life." He said he doesn't know where the relationship is going, "but what I do know is that being in the cocktail hour of my life, I am blessed with a magnificent family thanks to incredible Suzanne, a privileged life, and our business that we created 50 years ago." Somers died in October 2023, a day before her 77th birthday, following a battle with breast cancer.
BBC News
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Race Across the World has made Coventry brothers closer
A pair of brothers who are taking part in the latest series of Race Across the World have said the experience has improved their Mole and his brother Melvyn Mole, who are both in their 60s, are one of five teams who have raced more than 14,000km (8,700 miles) across China, Nepal and India for the chance to win £20, Coventry born brothers said they are using the show as a way to reconnect with each other."Before the race, I couldn't imagine Brian and I talking the way we've spoken over the last seven weeks." Melvyn said on the show. On Wednesday's episode the teams embarked on the penultimate leg of the race across India, from Sasan Gir in Gujarat south to Panaji in being at the top of the leader board, the brothers made the decision to visit a vineyard in Nashik, Maharashtra, costing them the top siblings expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to reconnect."Our relationship will only get better now," Melvyn said on the Mole jokingly told Radio Coventry and Warwickshire: "We're blokes, we don't usually say I love you to your face, he was lucky to get a hug the other day."Brian previously said it took him a little while to make up his mind about joining the challenge but he was glad he his delight on the show he said: "Once the race is finished we'll speak to each other more. "I'm not a big lovey dovey bloke but I love him really, I wouldn't tell him that to his face," Brian joked. Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
