Do you want to take straw and make it gold? Last week was one where the weight of reality felt like more than I could carry. The first half of the week was spent at the end of my rope. There are two stories that won’t let go, stories of hurt and disappointment, and feeling …
People make fun of girls like me, and I’m OK with that. We’re the ones who are ready for sweater weather and cozy blankets, cool evenings and warm spice, bonfires, leaves and all the pumpkin things, and it’s not even September. What can I say, I love it all. I am trying to make a …
Last week, I posted – very much accidentally – a live video on my Facebook profile. The “how” of it is not a great story, let’s just say it was meant for my writing community, as a response to a particular challenge, and that when my entire news feed was filled with people posting to …
In the middle of winter, 2012, I went looking for a safe place to let my heart break, and found it on a mountainside in Colorado. In the clear light and thin air, I started to face the ways that life was not turning out as I had expected it would. I had been *trying* …
After my grandfather passed away, my dad took our family to New York City. He wanted to give my grandmother something to look forward to, and overall it was a lovely trip, but that’s unfortunately not the point I’m here to make. By the last day, we had used up our metro passes, and we …
“This time matters.” Take a moment. Take a breath. Today matters. This week matters. This year matters. Because you matter. You count. “This time matters.” I say this to myself at least once a day, usually when I’m trying to slough away layers of stress or get my mind to focus on something worthwhile. You …
When you look at the world, what do you see? When you look at your day, what do you see? When you look at your circumstances, what do you see? I’ll be honest, I’m having a hard time answering those questions these days. In many ways – big ways – I’m craving change. All of …
I was in my early twenties the very first time I looked around a room and felt like I was “the adult.” It was closing time at my favorite café, and there were a handful of older teens outside, smoking weed and getting rowdy, and showing no signs of moving along. The young woman closing up …
Jealousy is a wasted emotion. I know this, because over the years I have given it time and energy and attention in spades, and not once has it given anything back. It doesn’t inform me, or enlighten me, or teach me truths about myself. It doesn’t even make me appreciate the many blessings I do have. …
The daily routine of “setting intentions” is relatively new to me, but I’ve found it to be a practice that feeds my soul and nurtures fledgling hope. Those few quiet moments of looking at the big picture and remembering what’s important, have done much to balance the frantic pace with which I often tackle my …