From Mom’s perspective and then the boy himself. — This morning, I stopped at a crosswalk to let a pack of young boys on their bicycles cross the street. Out of the blue, I got hit with a wave of sadness and almost made a U-turn to go back home. Images of different versions of my son flashed through…

And why I could never imagine my life without one anymore. I grew up a pet lover. We always had cats or dogs, even birds, and a turtle once. From a kid’s perspective, I had a good idea of what it meant to have animals in the house, which is…

No one is safe in today’s America. — It is becoming increasingly difficult to find something positive to write about. Violence in the news is a regular and somewhat anticipated occurrence. I scan the headlines and wonder why people seem so desensitized to the loss of human life. A feeling of helplessness looms large from the cumulative effects…

Where I’ll be spending my mental energy this summer. — This summer, I’m focusing on my son. Not in the sense that I’ll be a helicopter mom. He’s 20-years-old after all. But in a way where I plan on prioritizing him above all else. The tricky part will be figuring out how to be there for him without hovering. To…

And to think I almost didn’t go — When the invitation to my 25-year law school reunion arrived in the mail, I had no intention of attending. I had a gazillion excuses to let it pass me by — some more compelling than others. It’s a 200-mile drive and the price of gas is too high. Who will…

Thanks to our favorite travel buddies. — I had dreamt about a trip to Hawaii since I was a kid. My husband and I started a vacation fund several years ago and hoarded our frequent flyer miles until we had enough to book a ten-day stay in one of the most beautiful places on earth. Paradise did…

Why can’t we get a handle on this? — I know I wasn’t alone in my insomnia last night. I’m sure that countless Americans felt the full gamut of emotions that I did after learning about yet another school shooting in this country. Shock. Sadness. Confusion. Anger. Disgust. Helplessness. 19 children and two teachers dead. Why? How has our…

Even if you’ve heard them before. — I was prepared to submit a different version of this article for publication as soon as I heard back from the literary agent who requested my full manuscript. Yes! You read that right. In response to a query, someone requested to read my full manuscript — all 86,000 words of…

Finding the upside to a change I’ve been dreading for years — You got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive E-lim-i-nate the negative And latch on to the affirmative Don’t mess with Mr. In-between - Lyrics by Johnny Mercer The message of that song — released by Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters in 1944 — rings true for me loud and clear today…