The concept of re-inventing oneself seems consummately American to me. As the grandchild and great-grandchild of immigrants, this idea, that I am not now all that I can be, was not merely passed down through generations of storytellers but branded on my heart and...
It was 1989 and, looking back, my parachute was crimson. The ink on my Bachelor of Science degree in Biology had been dry a year and my teaching certificate had just arrived in the mail (the extra-postage-required, this-could-take-a-month kind of mail). I thought it...
As I do every morning, I got in my Jeep yesterday, buckled up, and drove off. I was maybe a block from the house when the seatbelt alarm went off. I jammed the tab in with no effect. I unbuckled and re-buckled. Nothing. And then I looked in the passenger seat where my...
Join me in acting like a big baby: Take a step toward what you want.
Even when it is scary, do it anyway.
Embrace yet.
Let go of the fear of appearing awkward or foolish.
Accept the crooked line as the perfect path for you.
Learn from falling down.
Use what you have and reach out for support.
Celebrate every moment—big and small—toward your goal.
This was not the plan. I had a plan. If you know me personally, you know it was a solid plan. Spreadsheets were made. Gantt charts catalogued the aggressive but manageable timelines of key activities and their dependencies in an intentional array of colors. Resources...
At a conference last year, an author spoke about revising her manuscripts with a look of rapture usually reserved for the sacred or the sensual. My first thought? Are you kidding me?! What about revising and editing could possibly evoke this level of euphoria?...
Before I began writing seriously, I saw it as a singular pursuit. I imagined a disheveled person at a desk in a windowless room with a half-drunk cup of cold coffee and maybe a sleeping dog. I don’t know why the writer in my mind was unkempt, perhaps because I...
A wise friend made a point with me last week. My friend sent me a photograph of a snow shovel ( a tool with which I am all too familiar). The caption said, ‘This is a great tool. Unless you’re holding the red end. Then you’re going to be frustrated.’ I love it when...
When we were on Guemes Island a few weeks ago, we watched a large sailboat come up from the south. Even without binoculars, I could see the sail straining as the wind filled it. The boat tilted slightly and then glided across the water. As it came around the tip of...
I have two routes to work. My preferred route is a winding country road cut into the base of a hill. It meanders through farmlands that abut the Snohomish River. When the temperatures drop below freezing or the river threatens to jump its banks, I am forced onto the...