Do you feel like we do?
From the category archives:
Even for Superman, bending steel can be hard sometimes. So how are we mortals to be strong in the face of insurmountable odds? I mean, what were the odds that I would catch the early-morning dog walker whose little darlin’ was dumping in our yard every day? After all that work I did last Fall [...]
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I was getting a cup of tea last Wednesday when I saw a copy of The New York Times. A girl from Aleppo, Syria appeared on the cover. She’d lost her home in a missile strike the day before. This lullaby is for her. To be powerful is to be fragile. — Ai Weiwei [...]
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Was it the songs from “Napoleon Dynamite” I’ve used for Coconut Girl videos? Or my “Vote for Pedro” PJs? Whatever it was, on Tuesday, I Law-of-Attracted Uncle Rico to my doorstep. Rico arrived at 11 AM while I was working at the dining room table. The kids were at school and I was drafting plans [...]
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One of my favorite dining companions is a two-year old girl named Sophie. She and her brother Lucas have been friends of my kids since preschool days. Here’s an homage to Sophie, who needs some extra love right now.
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My visit today to the local, big box home improvement store should have been ordinary. Instead, it was extraordinary. I could tell something was different from the moment the sliding doors parted for me. Men smiled sweetly and stepped aside as I passed customer service. Those with baseball caps reached to tip them. One gentleman [...]
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“Don’t turn around twice; they’ll be grown up!” Parents of young children hear this advice (or its equivalent) all the time from people with grown kids. The sentiment well-intended: learn from my experience that this time is precious. Treasure it. There are subtexts as well. -I didn’t appreciate the time with my children enough, and [...]
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My friend, T., lost her mother to cancer several years ago. I wanted to make her something: a tiny square of gold foil suspended from a string. “Tape it to the ceiling so it hangs over you you while you sleep,” I wanted to explain. When my mother was gravely ill some years ago, [...]
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It’s a sad state of affairs when your son cries if you laugh really hard. Because he’s not accustomed to seeing you crack up. To him, the long, silent smile, the quivering shoulders, and little puffs through the nostrils are freakish. Terrifying, even. Come to think of it, my laughter bums out my husband Joe, [...]
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Found on the floor of the check-out aisle at 11 pm. Pull up a chair. It’s time to eat. Just move that floor lamp if there’s not enough room to get around. Doug, you sit next to Amy. God. Thank you for the blessing of family, for everyone arriving safely and being together again. Thank [...]
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When you’re a kid, your best friend’s mom is a mystery. Is she strict or permissive? A good cook, or a lousy one? With each visit, you gather clues. Dinner aromas drift into the den where you’re playing Legos. The next TV show begins and you wonder if she’ll appear in the doorway to say, [...]
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