Life. Books. Family. Unschooling. Faith.
I have made many mistakes in my life. But having seven children and homeschooling are not any of the mistakes. To erase or to manipulate my history in one swift time machine trip would be to erase the good with the bad.
I am who I am. I fight for others. I own my choices and stand firm against abuse. I am not a victim. I am whole.
Cheryl Strayed, in her book Wild, describes her journey, hiking across one side of the U.S. while facing her ‘demons’. She wrote that she told herself that she would change the script that many women are told. She told herself that she was strong, safe, brave. I liked that. It fit my script, that dialogue… Continue reading I am strong. I am safe. I am brave. But….
In Bridget Jones’ Diary, Bridget wonders why her parents and their generation seem to have it all together. She wonders why they don’t seem to suffer the angst and worry of herself and her friends. Maybe, she ponders, maybe this happens because they didn’t and don’t read self-help books.
Are you a Jane Austen fan? I am. And I have often wondered how the simple stories of villages and the fate of women can hold so many generations.
I think it comes down to style. Jane has a quiet satirical style. For her novels are not really romances (though Hollywood might disagree). Romances are not enough to hold my attention. And, I think, the attention of generations. Instead, her novels tell of the raw life of women – in her time, and in ours.
Food and hunger are not the enemy.
Nothing is. Really.
Because nobody can tell you how to participate in life. You have to do it. (Though mercy, love and support from others can help, right?)
We know life because of family. This is our heritage.
Dolores Umbridge: I am sorry, dear, but to question my practices is to question the Ministry, and by extension, the Minister himself. I am a tolerant woman, but the one thing I will not stand for is disloyalty.
Minerva McGonagall: Disloyalty?
Dolores Umbridge: Things at Hogwarts are far worse than I feared.
The #Maybehedoesnthityou campaign has taken hold on social media. And rightly so. It describes emotional and mental abuse that may or may not be coupled with sexual and physical abuse. It opens up the door, that door behind which we silently cry, too afraid or ashamed to share. I know. I suffered this abuse. For… Continue reading We don’t talk about it. But we should.
There is something about birthdays. We have fun. We eat cake. We drink wine. We sing 80s songs on Singstar (well, that may be a peculiarity of our family). And mothers reflect. When our children, our young adult children, grow and mature, we as mothers mature. A passing birthday causes us to catch our breath, in… Continue reading Another birthday. Another reflection.
