A Great-Grandmother’s Tradition
Let the madness begin. Stuffed bellies, ringing bells, gifts to buy, cards to address, long lines, short tempers: Welcome to Thanksgiving Weekend. Even though many of us will spend this weekend with the people we love the most, it’s often as much a time of stress as it is a time of celebration. We know
Reflecting on ALL the ways we can help
I’ve been thinking it’s about time to retire this kindness column. I’ve been feeling busy lately. Really busy. Diva Connection is taking off (thank you, God), and that means more meetings, more trouble shooting, and more time making sure women in our community who need something connect with the women who can help them. I
Election’s End Brings Respite from Ugliness
For the past two months, I’ve been walking around like one of those “See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil” monkeys. I’ve been closing my eyes, covering my ears and zipping my mouth. Why? Politics. Every time I turned on the TV, switched on the radio or logged into my Facebook account, I
Day Makers Spread Kindness
There is a woman I run into on a regular basis who drives me crazy. She is always happy. I mean always. She teaches a Zumba exercise class, so for a while I thought maybe she was happy all the time because of all of the endorphins she has streaming through her body. Then she
Sharing Prayer has Great Impact
It’s one thing to help someone who has fallen on hard times without having done anything wrong. But it’s much harder for me to understand how people can leave their comfort zones to help people who have brought the hard luck on themselves. I received a letter from a woman named Marilyn Johnson that got
Replacing Hurt with Hope
My friend, Kristi, said something the other day that made my heart stop for a moment. But let me back up. Kristi is a one-woman parade: marching band, confetti, the whole works. She walks into the room and brings sunshine and gale-force winds. She has more energy than anyone I have ever met. Anyone. Ever.
Girl’s work resonates long after she’s gone
I want to follow up on the column I wrote last week about volunteering with your kids. The day after it appeared in the paper, I got an email from a woman named Karen in Sykeston, N.D. I think she illustrates better than I ever could just how much of a difference one person can
