In the Mumford and Sons song, “Awake My Soul,” there’s a line that says, “Where you invest your love, you invest your life.” I just returned from a trip to visit my aunt. In her bathroom, she has a towel that reads, “Love, Family, Faith.” In those three things she has invested her entire life...
Recently, I had two dreams back-to-back that both featured me eating gummy bears. This struck me as odd. I like gummy bears, but they’re not something I usually seek out. Being more the organic dark chocolate type, they’re not a candy that typically crosses my mind. I’ve always meant to get better at interpreting and...
Since rewatching the broadcast of Come From Away—the Broadway musical now streaming on Apple TV— I’ve had the song “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace” stuck in my head. We sang it often at mass when I was growing up, and I found it to be not only a beautiful melody, but wonderfully aspirational...
I’ve written often about hope in this blog. As you know, I believe it’s nearly impossible to sustain a life in the arts without it. And hope is certainly what continues to get us through the aftermath of 2020. Interestingly, it is my relationship to hope that has undergone the most change for me in...
If I were a visual artist, I’d be a fiber artist, using the tools and traditions of all the women who came before me and whose artistry was often overlooked. If I were a singer, I’d be a folk singer or maybe a soft rock artist, the type who tells stories in their songs. If...
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...
During the pandemic, I’ve fallen out of touch with a few of my favorite people, including my Future Self. I used to enjoy chatting with her often as I created new products or programs or services. She was always one of my greatest cheerleaders, but also the person I could count on to advise me...
This weekend, I’m walking into a situation with outrageous hopes, and it reminds me of this conversation I had with my husband. So I’m re-publishing this post from July 2017: The other day, I was explaining a hope I had for my business as I was opening a stack of mail. My well-meaning-but-wet-blanket husband repeated...
There’s a line in the Carrie Newcomer song, “Betty’s Diner,” that says, “Despair and hope sit face to face when you come in from the cold.” She’s talking about a gathering place where people from all walks of life arrive to accept nourishment and a kind word. They come looking for hope. Ordinarily, I love...
The other day, I was explaining a hope I had for my business as I was opening a stack of mail. My well-meaning-but-wet-blanket husband repeated his favorite quote, “Hope is not a strategy.” At that moment, I opened an envelope that contained a check from a person I had reached out to with a business...