“Ruffled feathers and endless squawking over a minor difficulty is typical of a crow’s life. I lean back on the counter and realize that could be my line….”
I’m knock, knock, knocking on heaven’s door. The view of the lake makes me want to be a better person, the weather softens my rigid interior, and the birds bring my thoughts to loftier places. How can I leave? Who will I be when I return? It is clear to me that the environment, the […]
She asks, “Am I bothering you?” No one ever asks me that and it throws me for a minute but I smile and say, “No, of course not.” Her movements are slow, always a somber expression, unless she is teasing me, and I notice her eyes never stop observing the world. I wonder about her […]
All I said was, “When I open the back door to the lake house the geese fly away,” and mom screamed, “That’s a blog.” She informed me that I would be today’s guest blogger, opened her computer, and demanded I expand on this thought. When I open the back door to the lake house the […]
Living in the GapA paradox of anticipation and fear Will this day grant me the privilege of time Allow the nausea of reflectionTo regurgitate my thoughtsupon the porcelain page I buckle under the weight of unleashed expression Freaked out that my truth has been flushed away Or will my dream gather like lint in the dryer Until solid […]
I tell my sophomores exactly when they will have an epiphany and how they will share this new wisdom with the class. An epiphany is an experience of sudden and striking realization. They like to moan and complain, “Mrs. O, what if nothing happens to me? Isn’t that God’s work? Are there some epiphanies that fail?” What I am […]
She might be small in stature but this woman is large in life. She is quiet by nature, always on the go, annoyingly optimistic, but never a pushover. She can be obliging but she will take you down if you walk on her freshly mopped floors. She has an adorable laugh, holds my secrets like […]
Emotionally intelligent (EI) people rock! Success is infatuated with EI people because they are resilient, optimistic, and they could fill a small stadium with their friends. Of course the opposite is true for the emotionally deprived. There is a lot of information out there about the importance of emotional intelligence, but we’re so focused on […]
I glance at my watch noting the time of day. She sleeps, but only for a while, then I’ll be back on my feet, forced to live in the indelible moment. It is challenging to babysit a child after menopause, even the daughter of my daughter, because I have become so greedy with my time. […]
Seth Godin says, “The best way to learn a complex idea is to find it living inside something else you already understand.” For example, if I want to understand the complexities of gravity, I just throw the cat into the air, and note how he always lands on his feet. Gravity is an invisible force, […]
We exist in layers, and this makes understanding each other difficult, because often we only see one strata. If I were to ask you, the five defining stories of your life, what would they be? Maybe you would tell me about your family of origin, important traditions, meaningful relationships, and experiences that had a potent […]
Living in the Gap 