To hear a child that you have come to love as your own say these words to you is devastating! You quickly realize that you have been living in a state of denial, convincing yourself that, although you did not birth the children, they think of you as their real mother. It is a rude... Continue Reading →
Standing on the beach, staring out at the Pacific Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean, I am always awed by the immensity of the oceans, and I am fascinated that every day, the tides come and go on a set schedule, meaning that there is order in at least one part the world. In Muir Woods... Continue Reading →
Being alone for me was a defense mechanism, a means by which to avoid the conflict and anxiety of being bullied. Mama and I shared a three-room apartment, with a living room, bedroom, and a kitchen. For Mama, the living room was her sanctuary, bedroom, and bar, a place where she drank alone and often.... Continue Reading →
I have dark days. My husband can sometimes detect that something is off with me, but, more likely, I have to tell him that I am having a bad day, and that I need to be left alone to deal with it. I still shop, clean, and do my job. I just feel like I... Continue Reading →
When I look back at my life, I am amazed to still be alive and hopeful that life can be beautiful, no matter the craziness of this life. I think of the reality, for me any way, that from the time before I was even born until the gray that permeates my hair today, God... Continue Reading →
I was heading into the airport, on my way to Montreal, Canada to give a presentation. In my excitement, I nearly forgot to wave goodbye to my youngest child, Malcolm. He was the only one of my five children who came from my body. I had suffered three miscarriages before I was able to carry... Continue Reading →
Sitting in a Sociology class on family and marriage with a group of twenty-somethings, one young woman suddenly asked me how I managed to make all As on my exams and papers. I told her that because I started college at age 36 and had been raising children for 25 years, I had lived everything... Continue Reading →
In 1998, I was sitting alone at a table in a nice restaurant in Madrid, Spain, preparing to eat lunch, when a Spanish man invited me to join him and his wife for lunch. I was hesitant, because I was alone in Madrid, and I did not know how to relate to other people, always... Continue Reading →
All I knew about taking care of children when I became a mother to my sister's four children was that you feed one end, and you wipe the other, and you never get the two places confused! It's true that there are no manuals that help new mothers, whether you are having one child or... Continue Reading →
A picture I saw on another blog site of a father congratulating his daughter on an award started me to reflecting on the question of what if we could choose our parents. What would be the criteria we would use to decide who would be the perfect fit each of us. It is downright intriguing... Continue Reading →
Help from Heaven 