I think it was Plato that said an unexamined life isn’t worth living.  Or maybe it was Socrates.  And maybe he said that life without philosophy isn’t worth living.  In any case, some famous philosopher once said that we need to examine our lives, and in doing so, we will find meaning. I have no…

My firstborn son started kindergarten yesterday.  I’ve spent his entire life trying to help him be healthy, happy and safe.  Six years of doting, worrying, learning and growing all led us to the moment The Professor opened the car door, donned a giant backpack and teetered off to his classroom with a “Love you, too,…

In a world where we never attain perfection, can we ever truly accept that we are good enough? Last night, I watched with admiration and even awe as five young American ladies tumbled and flipped their way into the history books.  The “Final Five,” as they dubbed themselves, won gold in the women’s team event,…

Do you think humans are essentially good, or inherently evil? I’ve often heard people comment that when they look at a tiny child’s face they see pure innocence.  We sniff a new baby’s head, cuddle them closely and imagine all the possibilities they have in store for them.  They are physically and conceptually perfect.  They…

The 4th of July has just passed, and all around my small town in Colorado you can still see flags flying.  The patriotism was tangible last weekend.  People donned their flags across their chests, or symbolically strapped on their red-white-and-blue Crocs, and gladly took a day off work to watch parades and eat watermelon.  What…

When it comes to conversations about gun control, there’s one argument that pops up quite regularly that stops the conversation in its tracks entirely needlessly.  When a suggestion is made to limit access to assault rifles, a gun-toting NRA advocate can often be heard saying, “But what about BOSTON?  That massacre happened without a SINGLE…

Just when I thought I was content with our house – its newly painted black doors, its remodeled kitchen and clean new white baseboards, our belongings drastically sorted through, purged and lovingly arranged on our clean(-ish) shelves – I had to go look at some shiny new dream homes and ruin everything. We went to…

Am I the only one that cringes when someone asks about my hobbies? “What are your hobbies?  What do you like to do in your spare time?” people (and confusingly, paperwork at the physical therapy office) ask. First off – spare time?  What is this spare time that people speak of?  Does anyone really have…

I love words.  But words get us in trouble sometimes.  Sometimes, I wonder if words get in the way of us supporting each other the way we need. Take, for instance, this scenario:  Your friend’s relative has just been admitted to the hospital and the friend takes to social media to ask for support.  “Please…

I’ve never felt as little as I did swimming chin-deep in the icy cavern of navy water at the bottom of Hanakapi’ai Falls in Kauai, Hawaii.  The water roared and tumbled over the cliff face from 300 feet above, drenching us with its powerful and spectacular spray, pushing us firmly toward the black lava rocks…

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day.  And I get to celebrate it, as if I deserve it.  As if I am something special.  As if I have any right to this privilege of motherhood, or as if I have anything important to offer the little boys that love me inexplicably and unquestionably. I don’t know why I…

Once upon a time, there was a mom and a little boy named Huck.  Huck loved playing with his mom, and his mom loved playing with him.  Sometimes, Huck liked exploring on his own, and sometimes, his mom liked to read and talk to friends and check Facebook on her phone.  Huck and his mom…