Like many people, I watched the Golden Globe Awards last Sunday night, and was blown away by Oprah Winfrey’s speech as she accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement. It was inspiring, empowering, and it made me feel as though, yes, a new day is dawning, and the world is about to change for the better. At no point did it occur to me, however, that this was a political speech, or the launch of a political career for Oprah. That changed the [...]
It’s like riding a bicycle – you never forget how. That’s how I felt recently when I picked up a crochet hook, bought a few skeins of yarn and a new pattern book, and crocheted a baby blanket for some friends of my son who were expecting their first child. Then I made another one for my daughter’s sister-in-law, who is due next month. And now I’m off and running. My grandmother tried teaching me how to crochet when I was young, but it never [...]
A friend of mine, who’s also a long-time reader of my column, asked me a while ago if there were any send-off events in the works as I prepare to move out-of-state. If there weren’t, she said she’d love to help organize one. I hadn’t thought about anything like that, but I was trying to plan a book launch party to celebrate the book I recently published, which includes a number of the columns I’ve written over the years. I’ve been to several book launches, [...]
It’s something that I’ve always dreamed of doing, and that I’ve started a number of times but never quite finished. I’ve helped others do it, and I’ve done it twice as part of a larger group, but never on my own – until now. I’ve just published my first book. I don’t know which was more exciting, holding an actual copy of the book with my name on the cover, or seeing the book listed on Amazon, which made me feel like a “real author” [...]
A soft, gentle rain was falling, the kind that makes me want to curl up under a fuzzy blanket and listen to mellow oldies on the radio. Or sit out on a screened-in porch with a glass of wine and a good book or an empty journal just waiting to be filled with my own thoughts and reflections. It was a great way to start the Writers Retreat I attended last weekend. The retreat was put on by the women writers group I belong to, [...]
I had just finished a presentation for the staff at a Senior Living Community, when one of the attendees came up to me and said, “You know, you could be a pastor.” I was flattered by her words, and more than a little surprised. No one’s ever said anything like that before. People have told me they were inspired or motivated by my programs, or that I gave them a new way of thinking or looking at things. Some later told me of changes they [...]
A friend of mine was a Hall of Fame gymnast back in her college days. This came up recently while we were discussing something that’s been in the news a lot lately – the powerful and addictive pain medications often prescribed for severe injuries, or surgery to treat those injuries. The kind that many athletes incur, as well as entertainers such as Prince whose acrobatics on stage can be just as demanding on their bodies, and can cause just as much damage. That’s not the [...]
The Department of Nice. That’s the federal agency I’m going to be in charge of after my daughter is elected president. My husband and I spent last weekend in Florida, visiting our daughter and son-in-law. On our first morning there, we spent the earliest part of the day just talking and sharing thoughts on whatever subjects came up. Our conversation eventually turned to the presidential election, and to news and views of the candidates. At one point, I turned to my daughter and said, “You’d [...]