I had a chaotic day yesterday. From my daughter waking up early, to a rock band rehearsal in my band room when I got to school, through a busy teaching day where there was always a lesson or rehearsal going on, to my daughter’s dance studio after school, there was a constant stream of noise […]
introvert
Child’s Fear, Parent’s Fear: A New Space
My good friend/cousin recently had a baby. Soon afterward, Edwin and I went to visit her and the baby at their house. Edwin has been there before, but not often. As soon as we got in the door, he was glued to my side. He huddled next to me, sucking on his pacifier, and barely […]
Little Steps Defeat Big Fears
Fear is a big, mysterious concept. We know it when we feel it, but we find it hard to explain where it comes from. (In that way, fear is a lot like bravery, another indefinable force that I wrote about in a guest post for the Female Yoda.) Fear can often be crippling; it has a […]
It’s OK to Judge Parents
This is the first post in June’s focus on parenting. Scenario #1: You’re walking past a hospital nursery and you peek in to look at the adorable newborns. You see that one of them has a pacifier in her mouth. You think, “A pacifier when she’s only a few hours old? That might interfere with […]
Friday Book Review: Quiet (A life-changing book)
I started reading Susan Cain’s Quiet several weeks ago, and the beginning blew my mind so much that I included it in my list of three life-changing books without even finishing it. Now that I’ve reached the end, I can say with absolute certainty that my initial assessment was correct: this book has changed my […]
Cancer Is A Connector: “The Girl With Cancer”
Back when I had cancer, there was no Facebook, no blogging, no Twitter. There was no easy public outlet for my fears and emotions, no simple connector. There were only real people, real conversations, and a high school-aged girl with cancer, unable to express herself through spoken word. I’ve been humbled and gratified by the […]