It Feels Good to be Trusted
I wonder sometimes about the messages I send even when I am completely unaware. I have been known to roll my eyes and huff at my youngest son, “Can you please remember to bus your own spot after dinner this time?” I wonder if I am secretly saying to him, “You can’t remember to do
Calling All Breast Cancer Survivors
2018. That’s the date (or at least year) set in my mind for the release of my new breast cancer book. This is the book that shows what the process of reconstruction looks like on a real woman’s body — my body. But I am only one. One voice, one body, one choice of the
Week 34 Memory Verse: Bring the light
I would never take a stroll with an artist through his studio and start judging his work. Can you imagine? Walking along and commenting to the one who created each canvas, saying, “Oh, that one is lovely… but that one really sucks… I love the colors you used in this one… but man that one
A Tree Full of Kindness
My dad had a stroke in the summer of 2016. For more than a year, he’s been a resident of an assisted living home. It’s a lovely place, but my heart hurts because I know that isn’t where he wants to be. I got to return to Wisconsin to visit him a few weeks ago
Attack of the Killer Zucchini
Apparently there is this thing in Southeastern Ohio where you leave an extremely large zucchini on someone’s porch or in their car. I’m not sure if the vegetable is left because the mystery giver is a friend or foe. That’s still sort of unclear. It’s kind of like back in high school, when I was
Week 33 Memory Verse
A car crashes into a crowd of people standing up against white nationalist protesters. What’s your first reaction? Do you lash out in a flurry of hateful words over social media, adding more negativity to the situation? Do you hide under a blanket on your couch, binge-watching Netflix so you don’t have to risk seeing
Kindness is a matter of the heart
A few weeks ago, I posed a question about the difference between helping others because it’s the “right thing to do” or because you want to do an act of kindness. I’ve already published some answers in this column, but I received one more letter in the mail that I couldn’t let go before sharing
