“I … hope that there is meaning in mess and pain, that more will be revealed, and that truth and beauty will somehow win out in the end.” — Anne Lamott Life is messy, sometimes unbelievably messy. What enables us to survive, more or less intact? …

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…

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…

You don’t have to move to a new city after a partnership dissolves, but many people do find themselves in this position — for reasons from social to economic to not wanting to “deal” with all the memories a certain place evokes. My reasons for moving were a combination of…

When the temperature sizzles, settle up for something different — The entire northern hemisphere is experiencing a heatwave and fires are devastating many parts of Europe. We need rain and lots of it, soon. And of course, we need to curb out global carbon emissions. It’s not a problem that’s easy to solve — but taking a break from the…

A Poem of Wrong Turns — The Narcissist sucks the breath from our lungs, makes us feel like we’re in an iron coffin, and we have to get out, out, out. The ability to breathe is essential to life — that goes without saying. But it seems like, our excitement allows us, at the beginning, to…

Especially If You Grew Up in a Small Town — Full spoiler alert: If you haven’t watched the series, you’ll get a pretty good rundown, here. I came of age in a small town bordered by a scenic free-flowing river. As a teenager, I worked at a small independently owned restaurant and social hub — although not quite to the…

And the Therapeutic Effects of Plant-Based Psychedelics — I’m a big fan of most of Michael Pollan’s books, such as This Is Your Mind on Plants, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and In Defense of Food. I’m both a plant person and a healthcare person, and I’ve studied mental health counseling. So when How to Change Your Mind came out…