Conniver, third generation. That was me, per my grandpop. He used to tell me I was just like my mother and her mother. Even at ten years old I knew that wasn't a compliment. To be fair, Grandpop was right. My genetic predisposition for conniving would rear its ugly head whenever my little brother and …
Category: Personal Journey
A is for Albatross
I received an email* from one of my students. His problem: writer's block. I think he knows there are better-written articles on the subject by better-written writers than me. But I've been where he is. I'm there right now actually. You see, were it not for that A, I wouldn't be here. I'd be watching …
Carpool*
Carpools. Whatever responsibility they take from you in terms of time-on-road, they drop back on you in burden-for-others. The half hour stint in rush hour is often fraught with excitement: Thanks to the idiots who use their commute to act out Grand Theft Auto and the crashes they leave behind, or the excitement of a …
Don’t Forget: The Bird Died
Death makes you think things. Like, even if you're beautiful and cerulean-flashy and you have wings, your end will come. Beauty won't stave the grim reaper, much as we'd like to believe. Still, I always thought a pair of wings would be super. That way, when life got dicey, I could just fly away. Hawks …
Fiction, a Confession
The beauty of fiction is that you can say all the things you wanted to say, then shrug and tell people, It's fiction. It's like being in the confessional booth with a stuffed bear. Father, forgive me. I put a saber between the ribs of my neighbor's hound dog for defecating on my lawn today. …
Shooting up Motivation
Phenomenal. I want that to be my word of the year. Easier said than done, I know. I have a plan. But first, a story. I choose to tell you about working out, though there are many areas in which I want to be phenomenal. Working out is a universal bane, er... goal. I'm not …
I Still Do.
I still do. More than twenty years have passed, and I love my husband as fiercely as the day I said the words. For that, I thank God. Twice. First, because God shows me how to love, and second, because when we follow God, we're easier to love. Bob is awfully easy to love, I …
Combating Christmas Overload, Best I Can
My list of Christmas action items feels longer than Santa's naughty list. The alarm grunts at me, and the I-should's instantly pop up like hostile beaver heads. Every time I knock one down, more pop up. I'm hoping I don't run out of time to slam them all into oblivion (thank you, imagination) before Christmas Day. My …
12 Days of Christmas: Extraterrestrial Giving
By extraterrestrial giving, I don't mean giving to aliens. Extra is latin for outside-of, and teres means circular or round. In honor of the twelve days of Christmas, it seemed a good idea to commit to giving twelve gifts outside my usual sphere, to do twelve acts that would make God smile. If you show love …
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The Thanksgetting Holiday
Abe Lincoln gave us our country, whole and emancipated. He gave us debate (along with Douglas). He gave us a war and saw it through to the end, at which time he decided that some purposeful, focused gratitude was in order. Although Lincoln's religious leanings seem pendulous, his moral compass was true. As his election …
KL Griffiths 