CAN’T FIGHT THIS FEELING
REO Speedwagon’s 1984 power ballad has been my ear worm all week. It’s been like my 9th grade homecoming dance in my head. “I can’t fight this feeling anymore. I’ve forgotten what I started fighting for…” I’m not sure what…
I’D BE DELIGHTED
It’s taken me decades to admit this: I’m not spontaneous. Some of you may be thinking, “Duh. It’s hard to be spontaneous when you’re an anal-retentive control freak.” For me, it’s not so much about control, but rather being dependable,…
FULL CIRCLE
I’m definitely not an expert on Día de los Muertos. But I love everything I know about the traditions and meaning around it. El Día de los Muertos originated as an Aztec harvest festival, a month-long party to honor and…
FINE MESS
My desk has way too much on it right now. It’s covered with sticky notes that ought to be transcribed elsewhere so I won’t lose the information on them, receipts to be logged and shredded, recipes to be filed, old…
BELONG STORY SHORT
Three different people, after recent visits to our Sunday gatherings, told me how much they appreciated our spirit of welcome and inclusion. I’m always glad to hear things like this. But it tends to surprise me a little because I…
SKY HIGH
For about four years, my family lived in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where we visited them annually. Usually, we’d get a hotel so we could have our own space and enjoy fancy resort amenities. But one time we stayed with them…
APPLES TO APPLES
Dang, auditions can do a number on you. I didn’t get the part I was hoping for. I’m disappointed, but it’s fine. They offered me a fun, featured role, and I know that I’ll have a great time bringing my…
A REAL DOOZY
Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve found myself frequently using the phrase, “a real doozy.” No idea where it came from, how I picked it up. I don’t recall ever saying it before, but now it’s all over the…
BE MY GUEST
I just finished reading a splendid book — Everything Sad is Untrue, by Daniel Nayeri. It’s an autobiographical novel written in the voice of an eleven-year boy, beautifully weaving together Persian myths, heroic legends, personal family history, and his own…
ONLY THIS
I watched a gorgeous documentary this week, Rivers and Tides: Andy Goldsworthy Working With Time. Andy Goldsworthy is an English sculptor who creates location-specific art out of the natural elements he finds on site — stone, twigs, ice, water, flowers.…