I used to make it my business to care what people were saying behind my back. It was during my high school days when much of what was said was right in my face. Being called bumpy or crater face because of my acne pimples or white girl because I talked proper, stung with the…
It’s mid-September, and in Baltimore, Maryland cooler weather greets the mornings making me think of delicious new comfort foods to create, a new search for the perfect coat to keep me warm, more snow boots, and inevitably my snow angels during the Baltimore blizzard of 2010. I figured I’m either gonna freeze to death in…
As a teen, I used to watch my father and neighbor sit for hours staring at a chess board and wonder how in the world anyone could sit for that long. With all the dancing, exercising, walking and jumping waiting for me to do, I couldn’t be bothered with so much sitting back then. Now,…
What do we know about truth? Truth is raw, naked, unbiased, and consistent. It has the power to spread love or hate, create divisions or unity, make friends or enemies. It can sneak up on you, hide behind a mask or walk boldly into your life waving a banner and a flag. No matter what…
I remember years ago, volunteering as a Court Appointed Special Advocate, a talk with my supervisor ended with her advising me to not to let my light shine so bright. Her comment immediately put me on guard but I wasn’t sure what she meant until I thought about it later. She was telling me to…
Resist your cravings. Give up snacking. Cut out fats, sweets, and salt. Resist. Give up. Cut out. Well, what kind of foolishness is that? Actually, it’s the exact mantra I chanted to myself when I turned 50 five years ago. I’d just seen a website that challenged a 30-day vegan trial. Well, I don’t do…
It’s after 12 a.m. and I’m at work, just outside of my patient’s room within earshot of his soft snore. As soon as the central air kicks back off again, the house will be prayer-room quiet. This might be the time for many people to rush to their Facebook account for a “Who’s up with…
I love candles. Aromatherapy from scented candles housed in glass jars creates a sense of peace and calm in my apartment. But when the wick burns down to the bottom of the jar, I always struggle to find a new purpose for the glass jar rather than throwing it away. Until the other day when…
In high school, I always had at least one large bottle of TJ Swann in the back of my closet. I don’t think my mother, and surely not my father, ever knew about my stash. However, they did know that I was the one who refilled the vodka bottle with water; and a quick sniff…
What could possibly feel lonlier? I send a text; no response. A few hours go by; no response. Twenty-four hours later I feel like a person who’s standing, uninvited, on the porch of someone they believe is their friend, ringing their doorbell, knowing they’re on the other side of the door, peeping through the peep-hole.…
Change Grow SHINE! 