My life-changing phone call wasn’t a diagnosis, and it wasn’t a death. It was a woman who dutifully informed me that my program of study had run out of funding and would be closing immediately. “But…what am I supposed to do now?” I blubbered, only a year away from college graduation. “You can schedule an […]
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My word of the year in 2020 was “savor.” It made sense in January, in my rushed and busy-doing-good life to slow down enough to savor the small, good things of my day. And then March happened and the world shut down. All four of us were sick and we lounged around the house, resting, […]
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One of my favorite parts of this season is waking up before anyone else, and coming downstairs to be greeted by the glow of the Christmas tree. I sit across from it in my darkened living room and admire the halo of colored lights as I sip my coffee. The morning is new. The day […]
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A Guest Post by Emily Sue Allen I show up at the sink to an insurmountable pile of dishes. Nothing is scraped. Nothing is sorted. My frustratingly miniscule counter space is overrun with remnants of our previous two meals—room-temp food, wadded up napkins between plates, stray silverware, and pans that need to be soaked. I […]
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My six year old son recently stumbled upon a miniature notebook. He was delighted to discover that it was brand new, and even more thrilled when I told him he could keep it. He grabbed a red marker and wrote “Henry” on the front. “What are you going to use it for?” I asked him, […]
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My husband, like many men, is not a big fan of shopping. You would never find him at the mall, or wandering into boutique stores in touristy locations. The appeal of walking and talking and browsing the aisles looking at pretty things is completely lost on him. Except if it’s Costco. He loves walking down […]
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Coming back to our condo in San Diego after three months spent on my husband’s family farm in Michigan was jarring. For a few days, I could only see all the ways in which our house wasn’t measuring up to my ideals. No yard. Shared walls. Very little natural light in the main living area. […]
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Every time I see the mosaic sculptures at Waterfront Park in downtown San Diego, I’m impressed. By no means are they the most awe-inspiring examples of this ancient art form, but I love the intricate pop of color they provide, set against the gray buildings of downtown. Mosaic art dates back to centuries before Christ […]
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The first time I confronted my own racism was at the dollar store. I was in the checkout line, emptying the contents of my basket on the conveyor belt. Standing in front of me was a black mom, a little younger than me, holding her toddler. In the checkout line right next to mine, a […]
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“Do you mean to tell me that your parents came to every single one of your baseball games?” My then-boyfriend looked at me like I had two heads. “Of course,” he said. I was still trying to wrap my brain around what Max was telling me. His childhood in rural Michigan was so different than […]
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