If nothing else, my tradition of choosing a Word for the Year instead of making resolutions has brought me some serious growth.
I don’t always know at the start where the word is going to take me. I don’t have a map or clarity around it, and I never reverse engineer it by coming up with my goals first and then picking a word that matches it. I just meditate on […]
Lines written in the days of growing darkness
by Mary Oliver
Every year we have been
witness to it: how the
world descends
into a rich mash, in order that
it may resume.
And therefore
who would cry out
to the petals on the ground
to stay,
knowing as we must,
how the vivacity of what was is married
to the vitality of what will be?
I don’t say
it’s easy, but
what else will do
if the love one claims to have for the world
be true?
So […]
Something just happened that I wanted to sit down to write about, because I know I’m not the only one who has dealt with this.
There are these things in my life that I call “tiny annoyances”. Something that doesn’t bother me enough that it needs to be immediately addressed, but bugs me every time I confront it.
I’m sure you’ve got these, too. Things like:
That one light fixture in the house that buzzes
The way […]
I have done the Word of the Year thing for several years now, instead of resolutions. I’ve really benefitted from it. As much as I try not to be too “woo-woo” about it, I often feel as though the word chooses me and not the other way ’round. This time, I especially feel that way, because I didn’t enjoy the feeling that came over me when this word popped up.
I […]
All this hype about Spring Cleaning never really resonated with me. Spring time is when I want to go OUT, I want to frolic and play and be nowhere near my house. Fall is when I start to nest. As such, I tend to turn toward de-cluttering, simplifying, and beautifying my spaces during that time.
It’s officially Fall now, and the weather in Atlanta seems to have finally gotten the memo. […]
Once again, my word for the year is approaching me in a (I suspect deceptively) gentle way. No flashing marquis, no fanfare. A gentle but firm hand on my shoulder, a whisper.
tend.
Garden seedlings and other tiny things need tending to be given the best chance of success.
In the fallout of my divorce (and radical life changes that went with it), I stopped giving attention to everything but basic survival. If […]
My word of the year for 2011 turned into my word for TWO years. I didn’t know at the time that invoking a seemingly harmless sentiment would change my entire life, and cause me to go basically silent here (and with my music) for an entire year.
I knew that baring myself to others, and most importantly, to myself, would require some change. I knew that I could not go on […]
You guys! I’m in a book!
Many of you may remember that I was a blogger for Stratejoy awhile ago, and had a great time spilling my guts about my own quarterlife crises. Well now, Molly Mahar has taken some of the best of the Stratejoy blog posts and compiled them into a delicious eBook. This would be a fantastic holiday gift for yourself of any woman you know who might […]
I did something a little out of character last week. Something that people have been telling me to do. A friend of mine was going to audition for The Voice, and jokingly suggested I go with him… so I did.
Now, I have lots of experience auditioning for things. I did theatre as a kid and into my early 20s, and learned long ago that someone telling you you aren’t right […]
I did it again. I have spread myself too thin and allowed myself to become overwhelmed with projects. One of the joys of being a creative person is that ideas can come very easily, and often many at once. My challenge in the last couple of years has been to learn to practice discernment and allow some ideas to wait instead of pouncing on all of them. Lately, I’ve slipped […]