Mental illness winds its way through my family tree just as poison ivy vines wrap their roots through the woods, without regard for beauty, for grace, for longevity, intelligence, humor or physical health, sometimes shadowing a tree and sometimes hiding in the tree's shadow. Mental illness touches everyone. And it scars. And it is feared… Continue reading Shunned

You'll never succeed if you don't try. And, hopefully, you'll succeed if you do. But, of course, that's not always the case, and really, who would want it to be. The failures make the successes all the sweeter. And they give us something to talk about. Either as the failure or as a bystander. For… Continue reading Random thoughts on the unsuccessful

Years ago, when I first started blogging, I began with loss as we readied our oldest for college in a different city. That loss - of his physical presence, his huge personality and the way it shaped our daily lives, of the mountains of laundry associated with an athletic kid, of the track schedules and… Continue reading My bad.

I’ve always worried about saying the right thing. Social situations have never been comfortable for me, not even with those to whom I’m closest. What if I say something that makes somebody else uncomfortable, something that embarrasses me, or, worse yet, what if I have nothing to say at all? Prior to any and every… Continue reading Good morning, everyone!

Most everyone has seen the video of Brandt Jean's impact statement following the sentencing of the police officer who shot and killed his brother. I’ve watched it twice today. The second time I cried like a baby. There are many problems associated with religion, religious doctrine, religious dogma, religious righteousness. Wars are fought based on… Continue reading Brandt Jean and the power of faith