People leave. Sometimes it’s because their time in this life is done. They go, like my father did, into that place where we can still feel their presence but only in a certain new way that’s never quite enough. Sometimes our time together goes short, though we planned on it being much longer. A handful … Continue reading Depths
Self-determination. When it’s starting to break free from inside of our children, we have to celebrate it. Nurture it. I find that right after my very small child has open-handed/high-five style slapped me splat in the middle of my face, it is not the time to celebrate it. But really, after I have recovered I … Continue reading Umbilical (from 2014)
This is a risky piece to write. Nerves are raw here in the US. I am experiencing many simultaneous feelings. I’m repurposing an original piece I shared on a social media platform yesterday, adding minor edits. I’m not writing to anyone in particular. As usual, I’m sharing my sociology-minded lens to the trends I’m seeing … Continue reading Distress
Here we are. So many layers. I’m perched, benched, resting. Working differently for a time until something moves or shifts that lets me know I’m ready again. I am watching the world go by, but I’m not out in it. For now. I put my toes in the water a bit last week and I … Continue reading Hummingbirding
I haven’t posted about race or the Black Lives Matter movement for a while. And it’s pretty common that we white folks will join the dialogue and discourse vigorously when it’s popular, then hit a wall of discomfort and freeze up or abandon the work entirely. Doing the work to lateralize power, resources and privilege … Continue reading Relinquish
HONESTLY…I can’t breathe very well today and I can’t tell if there’s more smoke in my house, or my glasses are just really dirty, or if the light is filtered by the haze and making an optical illusion in here. All three. It’s all three. My unrelenting headache lets me know it’s really bad, and … Continue reading Holding on
Sitting with many emotions these days. Things coming and going, bubbling up and occasionally spilling over. It’s been a summer of loss. Two women from different families, who will not be able to hug their sisters again. Two moms who each left a legacy of laughter and striving in spite of adversity. Mentors and friends. … Continue reading Tending
Fridays are for fortitude. It’s important to protect hope…to keep it in sight. Maybe it’s hard to access right now, and that’s ok. Today I had these thoughts: racial reconciliation is slow, but it’s birthing. The body (our country) is in shock–and pain. Some of us are just experiencing the first sense of pain and … Continue reading Fortitude
(Editing to add: The lens I predominantly write from is one that intends to be BIPOC affirming, though I understand intent does not always correlate to supportive impact. I am open to clarification of biases I may reveal in my writing. Blunt responses are welcome here.) Hi all. It’s become shockingly clear that we have … Continue reading Smoldering
Um…ok, I give up. I thought I was done posting on anti-racism, because it’s time to stop enabling. I’m not the white fragility whisperer. It’s not my job to entice or cajole you to do your own anti-racism work, white peers–and especially white female peers. My words clog up the space that rightfully belongs to … Continue reading The Data Doesn’t Pan Out?
