I shave my son, Zach. Let me back up. I’m a single mom with three sons. I’ve taught them all the things, like turning off toilet water in an emergency, the care and upkeep of wool sweaters, and how to pee standing up (which involved aiming for Fruit Loops). Of the three, Zach’s the oldest.Continue reading “How to Shave a Zach”
Tag Archives: Empowerment
A Night Well Spent
Say I told you that I spent a good, no, a great, part of my life in numbness training. Men thought me emotionally stable because I wanted nothing, asked for nothing, accepted even less. Women thought me a threat because men thought me well. I was never well. Say I told you that in myContinue reading “A Night Well Spent”
Seeds
The small, slow steps work. Every time. This is true of difficult decisions. True of preparing a gorgeous meal. True of creating beautiful art. The fastest track might yield “results,” but rarely offers a deep sense of fulfillment. For the last three years, I’ve suffered a variety of medical malfunctions. Maybe I’ve suffered this wayContinue reading “Seeds”
An Invitation to Keep Your Course
Today, there’s a swearing-in. Yesterday, three hostages were released. The day before, TikTok “went dark.” Last week, Zuckerberg decided to eliminate fact-checkers on Meta, citing a “cultural tipping point.” Last year, Musk created a reel using AI, putting words in Harris’ mouth, and called it a Parody. In the days of yonder, we called thisContinue reading “An Invitation to Keep Your Course”
The World Needs More Than a Tweaking
I underwent a little spine surgery last Wednesday. Yes. I’m fine. Yes. It was a necessary tweaking, offering hope to alleviate pressure and pain on my occipital nerves. I think of all pain, nerve pain is the worst. No. Heart-pain wins. But this isn’t about pain. This is about hunger. The day after my tweaking,Continue reading “The World Needs More Than a Tweaking”
Let’s Say…
Let’s say, recently, interested men-folk express their said-interest in you by pointing out all that they are willing to accept. And, let’s say, their acceptance, which is tolerance in disguise, shapes into a short list and on this list is the life you’ve curated, including your four Newfoundlands, your adult disabled son, and your ownContinue reading “Let’s Say…”
My Little Guide to Soap-Making
Remember, there’s juiciness in stems as well as flowers.
a little self comfort for the tender poet
I can only begin with advice I read (and re-read) from Rebecca Solnit‘s Facebook post, Nov 6th at 4:25 am, “Things you do not have to do today. –Join the frenzy of what/who to blame. –Take in a bunch more media. –Feel like you’re ready to face the next five years and have to planContinue reading “a little self comfort for the tender poet”
The Price of Energy
I collect money. Collect it in a mason jar. Collect coins and bills and hand-written IOUs on Post-Its. I charge five dollars per bad attitude. I began this transactional system when my sons were younger, say eight and ten and two. The price lower back then. A quarter for an eye-roll, a dime for a,Continue reading “The Price of Energy”
Bookmarks – Empowering and Essential Tools
The other day, in a workshop with Sarabande Books, someone shared the story of a librarian discovering a taco in the center of a book.
A taco.
Squished in the pages.
A taco.
