Not everyone can wiggle their hips in a way that defies gravity when it comes to hula hooping. It takes desire, practice, failing, and trying again. As a kid, I watched a hula hoop competition and told myself I’d beat the top time—maybe not that day, but in my own backyard, barefoot in freshly cutContinue reading “Makin’ Trauma Our Bitch”
Tag Archives: Mental Health
Wishin’ and Hopin’
What’s your superpower? Mine? Hang on. I just asked the question—give me a second. It’s not breadmaking. I proudly baked two loaves and tried to gift the second to my neighbors, only to find both houses already had fresh loaves of their own. Like, straight-out-of-the-oven. It’s not pushups, or weeding, or practicing Spanish, unless “yoContinue reading “Wishin’ and Hopin’”
Meat, Missionaries, and Moments Lost
This is a culture I don’t know anything about, Dave said as we walked back to the pool, both of us dripping in our freshly soaked swimsuits, taking a short pause from our swim. Let me set the scene. It felt like we’d been lured into a dark alley in some seedy corner of Vegas.Continue reading “Meat, Missionaries, and Moments Lost”
The Rocks We Carry
I verbally slapped a client today.The words were out before I could catch them. Not cruel, but sharp. A line too direct, a little too unfiltered. Immediately, I scrambled into damage control:“Are we good?” We are.And yet—I’m in my head about it. I used to get caught in this spiral far more often post-session. WonderingContinue reading “The Rocks We Carry”
How Not to Burn Your Hand on a Hot Conversation
You might think I’d be facing the pool, where Evelyn is testing out the still-curled, Styrofoam-like floatie that looks like a magic carpet, and Dave, still travel-drained, sits poolside absorbed in his Kindle. But no, I’m turned towards the West, where the bird feeding and watering station stands. The latest addition is a suet blockContinue reading “How Not to Burn Your Hand on a Hot Conversation”
The Mask They Built (Book Part 31)
Previous I’ve been writing this book for fourteen years. Terrifying feelings acting like imagined “Do Not Enter” signs have often felt real enough to stop me cold. Sometimes I could only manage a paragraph. A page a month. Honesty is required. But real honesty—the kind that pricks one’s finger and draws blood—shook me to myContinue reading “The Mask They Built (Book Part 31)”
Errands of the Heart
The internet and its comments never fail: “Do you ever think about how scary it is that Earth is just a floating ball in the middle of space… but we still have credit scores?” Isn’t that some crazy business? Today was a day of catching up on the buggery things that usually get swiped away—kindContinue reading “Errands of the Heart”
Breaking the Surface
The urge to write mounts like lava beneath the surface—little bubbles and steam venting into my thoughts and feelings. I’ve heeded its call enough to know when the giddiness and the wiser, more shareable thoughts reach their peak and need release. Right now, I’m in land-sculpting mode. With my trusty Gorilla Cart and lifetime-warranty, all-metalContinue reading “Breaking the Surface”
Loving and Letting Go: A Journey With Grief
At 16, I stuffed the shock of giving CPR to my dying mom deep inside. I’d talk about it matter-of-factly, like a judge handing down a life sentence—utterly void of emotion. No one taught me how to grieve, so along with burying her six feet under, I buried my feelings too. I said I wasContinue reading “Loving and Letting Go: A Journey With Grief”
Mapping the Territory of Confidence and Doubt
Are you able to discern the difference between when you’re in an insecure or secure state of being? As I sat shoeless and cross-legged on the floor of my office with a client, who also sat barefooted and cross-legged on a nearby brown leather loveseat, the focus of our hour-long counseling session fell on thisContinue reading “Mapping the Territory of Confidence and Doubt”