In her book of essays, poet Mary Oliver wrote, “…you must not, ever, give anyone else the responsibility for your life.”
It’s a lesson I learned the hard way, after breaking free of a very long, unhappy marriage. I learned it once more, as if to make sure I understood…
Are all of these delightful moments too much to ask of life?
I don’t know why finding what we need in life and then being happy with it is so hard. I think most of us want the same things: connection, acceptance, affection, and respect. Love. Like most of the single, straight women I know, I’m still waiting — but I’m no…
And building a future that helps it flourish.
A few years ago I was listening to a writer’s panel discuss the realities of a career in writing. The guest speaker, a handsome, successful writer, was asked, “What advice would you give to someone aspiring to a writing career?”
He answered, “Marry someone with a good job, someone who…
They will rise to fall in love again, have another child, start a new career, and move across the country to a place they’ve only visited in their dreams …
None of us has an easy life, because life is not easy. But I am easy to talk to and a good listener, a willing witness able to take in what my friends need to tell me. And so I hear about the marriages that withered, the heartbreaking miscarriages, the…
He wants to stay for a month, but a month is a long time to spend with a complete stranger. And my recent experience with a BnB guest who had to be forcefully evicted by my beefy next-door neighbor hasn’t left me in a trusting state of mind.
“OK…but we’ll…
A Poem
It was the worst year of my life, but seven years later I am still upright.
Well, not technically. I’m in my office-bed under warm blankets, two dogs
Keeping me company with soft snores and thumping, sleep-happy tails.
How do we survive a really bad year? Four seasons of terrible loss?
We just…
An Albuquerque Poem
My local public radio station carries NPR until noon on Sundays —
The Puzzler with Will Shorts, Weekend Edition with host Lulu Garcia-Navarro, an hour of Local New Mexico Events. …
A Poem
I smile when you awaken in the morning,
Your hair all mussed, sleep in your eyes.
In our clean kitchen, I make breakfast
While you make coffee, good and strong,
Not speaking until the caffeine kicks in.
You drink a cup, standing at the sink.
You look out, watch the dog…
A Poem
“COME OVER RIGHT NOW,” she shouts through the phone.
“He’s tall, and interesting, and cuter than fuck.”
I’m dressed in my comfy Target loungewear,
Watching reruns of “The Good Witch,”
So I hop in the shower and wear a cute
Outfit and drive briskly and SHOW UP.
Ninety percent of life is showing up, said the
Filmmaker…
- Why he still hasn’t hung the twinkle lights in the garden.
2. The fact that he said, “the cat you drew looks like an ostrich.” When he actually said, “I told you it looked like a kangaroo.”
3. Antique clock faces. He just bought it — she wants it —…
Wendy Cohan
Exploring relationships, travel, the arts, and entertainment. Seeking literary representation. https://www.facebook.com/WendyCohanWriter/ & https://twitter.com
