Anticipation
May 15
Over-protective
I'm not much for sappy little quotations and I generally delete before reading any email forward that comes my way with a subject line reading "A Mother's Heart" or any variations on that theme. I love my children fiercely, but I just don't go in for all that gooey greeting-card sentimentality. That said, as much as it pains my inner cynic to admit it, one of the more oft-circulated lines about parenthood truly resonates with me. It's from Elizabeth Stone, and I'm sure most of you have seen it one place or another: "Making the decision to have a child--it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart walking around outside your body." Every time I read it, all I can do is nod and agree, Yeah, what she said. Read more.
All My Careful Plans
by Marian Klatt
I hate to sound like one of those vapid starlets who try to make religions trendy by wearing trinkets of belief on their too-skinny wrists, but I truly respect the precepts of Buddhism. Every time I make a serious attempt to incorporate Buddhist concepts such as meditation and mindfulness into my life, peace becomes something I expect, not something I'm surprised by. Read more.
Early Bird
by Debra Marshall
I was never a morning person. As a teenager, and on into my early and mid-twenties, I was a notoriously late riser. Sleep was my best friend, and I prided myself on never willingly crawling from my bed before ten in the morning. In college I always scheduled late-morning and afternoon classes (except for the one torturous semester when I didn't notice until too late that my 2pm geology class had an 8am lab--oh, how I wailed and gnashed my teeth), and the only times I saw the sun rise were when I didn't make it to my bed before dawn. Then I grew up. Read more.
The Waiting Game
by Miranda Peterson
My sister is having a baby in a few months. It's her first. In fact, it will be the first member of the "next generation" for my entire family, the first baby in close to twenty years. The new arrival will be my parents' first grandchild and my grandma's first great-grandchild. This is a big deal for all of us. Read more.
There's a Tiger in the Room
by Kristie Kelso Rothstein
There's a tiger in the room
invisible to everyone but me
My mind spins around the danger
surrounding me
as the tiger crouches in the corner
I crouch down low in my seat,
trying as hard as possible to escape this enemy
waiting for it to get tired of this game
and leave. Read more.