Image Credit: Unsplash- Carmen Laezza Have you ever felt like you were two different people experiencing a situation from both perspectives that conflicted with one another? No matter how hard you tried, getting the different perspectives of yourself to agree and connect felt like an impossible goal. At the end of the day, you are…

Image Source: Unsplash- Hoi An Photography Oftentimes, we as grandparents are criticized for giving our grandchildren more than our children had. The truth is, we view our new experience with the little ones as a second chance to have the experience all over again. Although my children have had a wonderful upbringing–their words, not mine–they…

Image Credit: Unsplash- Natural Photos October 31, 2012. I stepped onto my front step in an orange Jack-o-lantern shirt and my orange cat ears to go trick-or-treating with my friend. The fall leaves decorated the water-soaked concrete. The sky had been gray for a little over a week, but the winds finally died down. Yes,…

Images: First, Meeka and Handler/Owner Teresa Perry traveling to Colorado, Second Meekaworking in San Diego, CA September is Service Dog Awareness Month, a time to honor the incredible work these dogs do every single day. For me, it’s also the perfect time to share the story of Meeka, my best friend, my partner, and my…

Image Credit: Pexels- Priscilla In a short ten-day span, my best friend of eleven years passed away, and then my divorce was final. I am only forty-four. I should not be burying friends, nor did I want the divorce. The days have been dark and gloomy with the two people I typically confide in just…

Image Credit: Unsplash- Sheila Jellison Nobody can quite prepare you for that transition. Not the one where you finish your degree, and you finally have to make some sense revolving around the word ‘adulthood’ (or, indeed, a lack of it). It’s that change where you decide to pack up your life into two fairly large…

Image Credit: Pexels- Emma Bauso A few days ago, I watched my oldest child walk across the stage and graduate from high school. I remember bringing him home from the hospital, swaddled in blue and full of newness. And now, just like that, I have an adult son preparing to step into his next chapter—college.…

Image Credit: Pexels- Andrea Piacquadio Forgiveness is often wrapped in a religious ideology, twisting the belief that to move forward in life, we must forgive those who hurt us. If we are unable to release and move past the trauma they caused, we are shamed into unworthiness of God’s love. For all my 44 years…

Image Credit: Pexels- Rachel Claire July is here. And whether we’re ready or not, it quietly marks something we don’t always talk about: The beginning of the second half of the year. Remember back in January, when we scribbled plans into journals, whispered dreams into existence, set goals with shiny-eyed hope? We told ourselves this…

This image was taken by our writer Karina Coghlan. Summer is here. The sun is shining, school is out, and families take vacation. It’s the season of road trips and airplanes (although not everyone is a fan of sky travel). It’s the season of adventure. Hiking, camping, fishing, the list goes on and on. As…