When I see isms in others around me, I can generally observe with detachment and compassion, creating an emotional space between their behaviours and my own involvement. But when those isms show up in people who are close to me, it’s so much harder to remain purely an observer. This started with the person who [...]

They say that infrants grow at the same rate as the strength of our arm muscles, enabling us to carry them as they age, but only to a point. There reaches a time when the size and weight of our child force us to let them go, so they can walk and run and begin [...]

It is a common desire to seek out the like-minded or similarly situated in society.  It gives us greater joy to share our passions with those who share them – consider a book club, or a professional association.  And in times of strife, we find comfort in those who understand our misery.      One of [...]

Several months ago I bought two tickets to a rock concert as a treat for myself.  The tickets arrived, I put them in my “important stuff” drawer and promptly forgot about them.  The other day I realized that the concert had already happened, and that I had spent $170 on two empty seats. As a single mom [...]

“Stop whistling those dirty songs” said my English teacher in college, as a way of demonstrating to the class how powerful suggestion can be.  Now, of course a tune can’t really be dirty, but if the listener recognizes the tune and remembers the lyrics that go with it, they can certainly choose to be insulted.  [...]