Collections

The Girl Left Behind – Losing My Mother as a Child: The Morning Everything Changed

I woke as the sun began to rise, unsettled by the knowledge that my aunt had been heard sobbing and screaming during the night.

I wasn’t panicked—no one wakes expecting to learn that their mother has died.

I noticed my uncle Chuck quietly making phone calls. When I asked if we could call my mom that morning, a flicker of alarm crossed his face. Then the doorbell rang.

My father, our church’s youth pastor, and my Grandpa Bell entered the living room and sat down together, composed and deliberate. George and I were told to stay in the kitchen and finish our breakfast. I had no idea that the moment we were waiting for would […]

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:14:22-06:00February 2nd, 2026|Collections, The Girl Left Behind Collections, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

Beneath My Silence – True Beauty Is Choosing Kindness in a Harsh World

What makes you beautiful has very little to do with how you look. It’s that you didn’t let pain turn you sharp.

You were tested, stretched, and wounded in places no one could see ~

and still, you chose empathy over armor. You offer kindness without keeping score. You lead with warmth even on heavy days. That choice ~

to remain compassionate in a world that rewards hardness ~

is a quiet kind of strength. And that strength is what makes your beauty lasting.

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:08:32-06:00January 14th, 2026|Beneath My Silence - Poems, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

Whispers To The Soul – Presence Over Excess

The Hunger for More—and the Grace of Enough

We live in a culture that treats more as progress and excess as freedom, yet many of us feel increasingly disconnected from our own lives.

We struggle when we ask more of life than it can give. We try to stand fully in the present while reaching for another place, another moment, another version of ourselves. This desire to have it all often shows up as restlessness—a low hum of dissatisfaction, a fear of missing out.

Yet our limits are not errors in the design. They are part of what it means to be human. When we resist those limits, a subtle sense of lack takes hold. […]

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:14:30-06:00January 12th, 2026|Collections, Whispers To The Soul, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

Beneath My Silence – Why Relationships Fade: Neglect, Trust, and the Power of Effort

Most relationships don’t end all at once ~

they fade over time. They unravel through neglect, selfish choices, unspoken truths, and moments where consideration quietly disappears.

It’s rarely one big event, but rather the accumulation of small omissions: not listening closely, not showing up consistently, not being honest when it matters most.

Relationships ~

whether between friends, colleagues, or partners ~

require intention. When effort becomes optional, and connection stops being a priority, distance naturally grows. Neglect can be just as harmful as outright hurt, leaving people feeling unseen, unvalued, and alone.

Trust depends on honesty and openness. Once truth is compromised, repairing the bond takes real work and willingness from both […]

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:08:25-06:00January 11th, 2026|Beneath My Silence - Poems, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

Beneath My Silence – God’s Timing and the People Placed Along Your Path

When we choose to open our hearts to the people God places along our path, our vision sharpens. We begin to recognize not only what God is doing in our lives, but how deliberately and tenderly it is being done.

The right people do not arrive by accident;

they come with intention, woven into the larger story God is shaping within us. Each encounter holds meaning.

The next person you meet may be far more than a coincidence ~

they may carry a word you need, a lesson you’re ready for, or the quiet answer to a prayer you stopped remembering. These connections are gentle signposts of purpose, scattered thoughtfully along our journey.

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:08:18-06:00January 9th, 2026|Beneath My Silence - Poems, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

Beneath My Silence – Never Lose Yourself

Already Enough

Do not shrink to be chosen. Do not dim to be held. You were never meant to fracture yourself to make the world more comfortable.

You arrived intact ~
no missing pieces, no unfinished edges, no permission required.

The world is not your savior. It is your teacher. It places stones in your path so you remember how strong your legs are.

Every challenge is an invitation, every ending a doorway, every moment asking softly:

Will you rise as who you truly are?

Claim your ground. Stand in your name. Your power has been waiting for you to stop giving it away.

You are […]

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:08:11-06:00January 8th, 2026|Beneath My Silence - Poems, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

The Girl Left Behind – Reclaiming My Voice: Surviving Childhood Abuse, Trauma, and Silence

Content Warning

This piece contains personal reflections on childhood sexual abuse, trauma, and post-traumatic stress. The experiences are shared thoughtfully and without graphic detail. Please read at your own pace and take care of yourself however you need.

Reclaiming My Voice

A few hours ago, a hike with Aspen felt like exactly what I needed. Now, the sadness has quietly moved back in.

I sit down to write, knowing it won’t be easy. This writing is one of the ways I continue to reclaim my life. I am facing those who caused harm, even though they no longer walk this earth. Still, I woke this morning feeling strong. The sun shimmered, […]

By Doré Frances|2026-07-26T12:14:40-06:00January 4th, 2026|Collections, The Girl Left Behind Collections, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments

Notes From George – Resilience, and the Quiet Wisdom of Optimism – Series

George learned resilience early.

Between the ages of six and eighteen, he lived through sustained psychological and physical harm. There were times I truly feared for our lives.

No one intervened—our alcoholic stepmother continued unchecked, and our father did not step in.

Against that backdrop, George’s later struggles with drinking, reckless choices, and incarceration are sadly understandable. The circumstances we came from were overwhelming.

Still, George refused to surrender optimism.

As children, we endured acts of cruelty that remain difficult to put into words. Once, our stepmother sprayed oven cleaner directly into George’s eye. I locked us in the laundry room and rinsed it as best I could with a wet cloth. He […]

By Doré Frances|2026-01-04T12:06:57-07:00January 2nd, 2026|Notes From George Collections, Why Wisdom Is Harder Than You Think|0 Comments