IT FELT LIKE HOME A Big Decision I’m on the precipice of making a big decision. I can stay on my current path or I can follow a road I’ve not yet traveled. If I take the new road, my community will probably change. My work will still be in the life story and personal …
THE KALEIDOSCOPE OF MEMORIES IN “THIS IS US” Different Childhoods Kate remembered the silly, shiny sequin fight, and Randall remembered the smashed broken plate all over the kitchen. If you watch the hit TV show This is Us, you know what I’m talking about. Though Kate and Randall are same-age siblings, each remembered their mutual …
YOU’VE GOT REAL MAIL–IN YOUR MAILBOX (OR MAYBE YOUR WALL) Today, I read an article about a family who found a set of letters in their wall. The letters were written by a mom and her adult sons during the late 1800s. When was the last time that you wrote a letter? Why are handwritten …
SUNDAY SUPPER AND OTHER TO-DO LIST ITEMS Sunday Supper Did you know that January is Sunday Supper month? I didn’t realize that until this week. With kids and adults going in different directions, it’s easy to get out of the habit of having meals together. We instinctively know, however, that family dinners are magical—they give us unique opportunities …
WHAT’S A MEMOIR? What Do You Do Again? Curious, compassionate, grateful people ask me every week, “What’s a memoir?” For twenty-five years, I worked as a data architect for multiple large corporations. And my family always asked, “What do you do again?” When I left Information Technology (IT) to pursue my dream to help parents …
TALKING MYSELF INTO A MASTERPIECE Talking to Myself (NOTE: Being in my head as I create a masterpiece—or any time for that matter—is not for the faint of heart. Read with caution! 🙂 ) Michelle, you bought that big, empty canvas twelve years ago right after you changed the floor plan. You dreamed of painting …
AND IT BLEW THE HOUSE DOWN . . . A Long Eerie Night The hum of our neighbor’s generator filled the pitch-black silence between my pleas, “Dear God, don’t let the old pines fall on our house tonight.” Jet engines overhead reminded me of the angst we felt just after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Logan …
5 SIMPLE WAYS TO HONOR YOUR FAMILY HISTORY A Labor of Love “Aw, remember that one? Remember when we went camping, and it rained for ten days? I remember we had to sleep in the car!” “Look how cute she was!” Followed immediately with, “Actually, how cute she still is.” Sigh. “I loved that dress …
WHAT ABOUT THE STUFF? Hurricane Harvey At the beginning of a crisis like Hurricane Harvey, everyone involved rightfully focuses on the only priority—saving lives. But, when the water recedes, residents and business owners assess the damage and cannot ignore the inevitable. Items that proved useful and necessary for daily living are gone, as are many …
STORIES REMIND US OF OUR HUMANITY Humans Helping Humans Stories of humans helping humans have brought me to tears more than once this week. What is it about acts of kindness, courage, or unselfishness that evoke such profound emotion? Hurricane Harvey’s devastation in Texas has brought much of our country back to basics. As we …