Tag: motherhood
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What Writing Looks Like
For the longest time, I believed that writing had to look a certain way. I bought into the narrative that crafting a compelling story was contingent on specific circumstances. I used to think writing had to take place in a local coffee shop, inspired by the background soundtrack of folksy music and hipster chatter. I…
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What Parents (and Kids) Really Need this Holiday Season
The store was crowded and hot and we’d been in there far too long. Perched in the shopping cart, my three-year old began yawning, a sure sign his nap time window was passing me by and we were living on borrowed time. Meanwhile, my six-year-old dutifully pushed the cart while I strode through aisles, looking…
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Finding the Beauty Through the Weeds
I’ve written before about my affinity towards weeds – their persistence, their unconventional beauty, their unsung purpose. But there can also be a dark side to weeds, a literal choking out of light. Weeds, seemingly innocuous at first, can grow so thick and fast that it makes thriving, or even surviving, impossible for other important…
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The Great Unfurling of Growing Up
Eight years. Eight years since I crossed the holy threshold of birth to become a mother. Dreams brought to life with the great ache of joy; quivering, squeezing, stretching until I emerged as something wholly new, holding someone holy and new. And now, through the creeping crawl of the days and the great strides of…
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What I Learn From My Daughter’s Righteous Rage
My daughter flails on the floor, screaming and crying. Her sister took the toy she wanted to play with and I won’t let her watch a show. She’s been like this for an hour, a fiery fury bursting from within. And with every attempt to soothe or distract or speak logic to her, she responds…
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These Wee Small Years
My feet ran through the thick grass, looking for a place to find cover. “Eighteen, nineteen, twenty. Ready or not, here I come!” I heard my oldest daughter call out. As I dove behind a short cypress around the side of the house, I was startled by a flash of red darting from the tree.…
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What If Mothers Just Said No?
What if mothers just said no? What if we decided not to be the ones to carry the heavy burden of the mental load for our families and society at large? What if we set down these invisible responsibilities that weigh us down? Before the weight of it all crushes us. What if we…
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Love and Loss
This morning, as I was baking a cake and doling out spoonfuls of batter to eager little mouths and orchestrating a silly celebration for my younger daughter’s half-birthday, millions of other women were marking this day with much less joyous memories. October 15th is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, and the entire month of…
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Taking Note from Nature
‘Tis the season for hustle and bustle, for stress and excess. Meanwhile, the natural world quiets, slows down, and turns inward. Meanwhile, bears and bugs hibernate, leaves fall from trees in a not-so-subtle suggestion to let go of that which no longer serves. Meanwhile, our busy bodies fight against their own natural urges. There are…
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My Darlings, I Delight in You
My Darlings, I hope you know, deep in your heart, how much I delight in you. I hope you see it. I hope you see past my tired eyes and my distracted mind. I hope you see the love and pride and joy that resides within those weary eyes. I hope you see how they…
The Small Wanders 