January 2021 My sisters and I often talk about our childhood and how certain experiences shaped us to be who we are. But when I recall the moments that were pivotal for me and how they influenced my view of myself or my world, Rachel and Suzy often don’t know what I’m talking about. They […]
December 2020 I have a Sunday morning ritual of taking a virtual stretch class. It’s not my most physically taxing workout, but when I take time to stretch the muscles that I build during the rest of the week it seems to make the hard days easier. This past Sunday was no different, except that […]
November 2020 I’ve been avoiding the things that scare me. Living on Kauai for the majority of the coronavirus epidemic, I’ve been in an isolated safe place with barely a sign of disease. I’ve steered clear of most of the media hype, and aside from activist initiatives, voting and supporting causes I believe in, I’ve […]
October 2020 I’m going to say something that might rustle your feathers. We’ve got to be careful about the pedestal we’re placing under Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I know that sounds sacrilegious but let me tell you what I mean. I admire RBG. She was a true agent of change, an advocate for women’s rights, and […]
September 2020 Hindsight is 2020. What does that mean to you? I never thought I’d be saying it means, “I’m sick and tired of 2020 and want it to just go away. I want to put it in my hindsight. Behind me. In the past. Finito.” Like Jo Dee Messina’s lyrics: Bye Bye love I’ll catch you […]
August 2020 Oh. My. God. Will you stop leaving your dirty dishes in the sink when the dishwasher is right there? Or if the dishwasher is clean, how about unloading it? Sound familiar? I feel like I’m negotiating more than ever before. Living in shared households and confined spaces creates real stress on all […]
July 2020 I have more on my mind than ever before. Fewer places to go means more time to think. And more time to feel. I have so many feelings these days that my brain feels foggy. It’s hard to focus and I’m inexplicably crying at the most random moments. My physical body feels […]
June 2020 April 4, 1968. I was a six-year-old white girl, living in a predominantly black neighborhood in Seattle when Martin Luther King Jr. was fatally shot. My parents, perpetual activists on topics including race, had been trying to help me understand the concept of racial inequity and to explain why one of our […]
May 2020 How ya feelin’? I’ve been asking that question a lot. My highly unscientific personal research indicates that half of the people I’ve talked to over the past couple of weeks feel that their days are consumed with guilt. Guilt for watching too much TV. Guilt for letting the kids do the same. Guilt for late-night […]
April 2020 During my adult life, I’ve lived through three major moments of global trepidation and uncertainty: the September 11 attacks, the economic crash of 2009/2010 and the current COVID-19 outbreak. In each case, our intertwined global community shifted from familiarity, safety and a reliable cadence into a discordant and uncertain day-to-day existence without […]