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I was thinking today about a fundraiser my husband, daughter, and I attended a little over a year ago for our local museum. We dressed according to the theme and enjoyed free food and drink. I had every intention of being on my best professional behavior — after all, I had been hired as a...
My husband and I were walking in our neighborhood when a car came racing by. I estimate the driver was going 10 miles over the speed limit. There was a blind curve coming up, and I’d seen some kids on bikes earlier, so without thinking, I jabbed my finger in his direction to tell him...
Two couples came over last weekend for a socially distanced, outside-in-the-cold birthday gathering for one of our friends. When he arrived, he had the “Celebration” song by Kool & The Gang playing on his cell phone. “Let’s dance!” he said. My husband and our other friends stood up to shake their booties. I got up...
The way I’ve been feeling the past few months reminds me of having morning sickness. “Morning sickness,” by the way, is a misnomer. While it does often strike in the waking hours, it’s just as likely to hit you any time during the day when a certain sight, smell, or taste sets you off. At...
Don’t ask me what I did this past week. It would tax my pandemic brain to tell you. I know I was busy from the time I awoke to the time I went to bed. I’m certain I kept up on daily chores and important routines, like cleaning the kitchen and exercising. I made an...
This morning I broke a record for the most times I’ve hit the snooze button on my alarm. I’m not proud of that fact, but in my pandemic world, there’s no strong reason to rush out of bed. Now, I know if you still have your full-time job or if you’re rising early to get...
Drawing is not one of my talents. Nevertheless, I took a class to learn to draw mandalas. As the instructor was demonstrating a design, she made a slight error. She encouraged us not to worry about our mistakes, though, because you could often incorporate them into your creation in an interesting way. “Some of my...
My husband and I were walking the other afternoon and came to a small intersection. A man and his daughter had stopped their bikes at the corner. The man was bent over fixing something, but the little girl–who looked to be about four–watched us approach. I smiled at her warmly, and she smiled back shyly....
Things are heavy right now. Author Caroline Myss explained in a recent interview that we often insist we need a reason to feel positive. Lately, it’s sometimes hard to find a reason. Many of my friends are admitting to feeling more negative than usual. I get that. I had an odd and disturbing realization about...
I looked up a quote I heard the other day attributed to Frederick Buechner and this is what I found: “Vocation is the place where your deep gladness meets the world’s deep need.” His words struck a chord given that I’ve been spending an enormous amount of time in this upside-down world of 2020 trying...