A friend asked me recently if I’m a hugger. We met post-pandemic, are new friends and are still in that stage where these little revelations are significant. “Yes!” I enthused. Followed by a pause. “Well, I think I am.” More pausing. “I suppose I’m a hugger more in theory than in practice now.” The pandemic... Continue Reading →
I just wrote the shittiest first draft of the story (much of) my life is built around. How can something so near be so hard to pin down in words? But when the cursor blinked at me, a little mockingly, if I’m honest, I just kept pressing on, focusing on the tippity-tap of the keyboard... Continue Reading →
The snap of the twig bounced the trees, then filtered out in multiple directions. The silence felt louder somehow after that snap. I adjusted the straps of my daypack, pulling them closer to my body. Unconsciously readying myself to run. I looked over my shoulder. At nothing. No one was there. I gazed up at... Continue Reading →
If you stumble upon a sunrise, that perhaps isn’t really a sunrise so much as morning light capturing your not-yet-caffeinated-enough brain, rejoice. This is a gift of possibility. Hold it lightly. See what it becomes. If you glimpse nature in all her finery, which may look more like the slightly ragged, down-to-earthness of scraggly pines,... Continue Reading →
Years ago, back in Florida, I spent hours sitting in community centers and church fellowship halls, drinking really bad coffee, and learning things that would keep me sober and sane. One of those ideas that I loop back to the most is that our self perception is slow to change. In fact, we're often the... Continue Reading →
Pick people who will reflect your true self back to you. They are guides. They are a pain in the ass, but they are guides.
The awe of a new place, that’s prayer. Wonder-drenched wanderings, prayer too. Shaking off fretfulness to focus on just this one particular, precious moment: prayer. Laughter that shakes loose something long forgotten, a lightness of being, a freedom; that is also prayer. Standing in the presence of art, anything that you decide is art (there... Continue Reading →
I had an appointment at the oral surgeon on Monday. This is notable because I hate everything that has to do with dentistry. And when the conversation shifts to using lasers in my mouth for a “procedure,” well I suppose you can understand how that could make me a smidge anxious. So, like the good... Continue Reading →
My birthday is coming up, which means I’m simply reeling with possibility. Not about the celebration. I used to care a lot what folks did to mark my birthday. Now I just care about cake of some sort. And my family being there, of course. With cake. (Is it even a birthday if there is... Continue Reading →
Adulthood is one long voyage into uncertainty. When I was a kid, I assumed adults had their shit together. Behind those big, translucent pink framed glasses, the moms of all my friends seemed to have a tidy sum of to-do lists that culminated in a well-oiled family machine. Mine certainly did. My family was conservative... Continue Reading →
