hope

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

On Hope, Creativity, Spiritual Self-Care & Chronic Illness

Hope, by definition, could be seen as ‘wanting something else to happen,' but for those of us with chronic illness, we know that ‘something else’ is unlikely within our lifetimes. Read...
Christmas was my family’s escape.

The Year Of The Christmas Tree

My mother was desperate for a tree, for a successful Christmas morning that brought joy and hope to our family after a year of hardship.

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Photo by Kristina Tripkovic on Unsplash

When Grief Turns Superstition Into Compulsion

Superstition ruled my mind. More than I realized. I had no idea, within hours, there’d be no child to mother. And then he was gone. And we were childless.

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Photo by Alex Pasarelu on Unsplash

How Other People's Kids Help With My Depression 

When I held Baby J for the first time, everything shuffled into place. For the kids, I see every reason to breathe. They love me. I don’t know why.

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I remember the Christmas that completely killed our childhood wonder.

Exchanging Old Christmas Memories For New Ones       

My sister and I aren’t the only people damaged by Christmases past. We're taking back the holiday and building new Christmas memories.

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"That’s the great thing about books where the world ends: you can close them and look up to see a world that miraculously managed not to end while you were busy reading."

Apocalypse Not Yet: Books About The End Of The World That Make It Feel Worth Saving

That’s the great thing about books where the world ends: you can close them and look up to see a world that miraculously managed not to end while you were busy reading. You can hop back into the fray of that still-turning, still-suffering world and maybe make your own Magic Vessel Of Flickering Empathy Waiting For Lost And Lonely Souls To Find while you’re at it. Ironic as it may be, that magic is part of the glue that holds humans together.

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Love for a child never goes away.

'The First Thing Was I Felt Remembered:' LOVE Bracelets For Grieving Parents

The original meaning of the LOVE bracelet, for me, was that my love for my son would never go away. It just was in a different form now. The physical was gone. But my bracelet was a reminder that the LOVE is always there. Six years down the road for me, I know there are so many other hard things that come along with losing a child.

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"There are a millions of ways to make a small difference in these stressful times."

Feeling Helpless? Try Helping Someone Else.

I step away from worrying about the federal government and think about my community for a moment. I ask myself who needs help, what do they need, and how can I deliver it. Then I do it.

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