“May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you’re wonderful, and don’t forget to make some art — write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself.” ~Neil …
On Self-Acceptance, Being Ridiculous, and Insane Amounts of Gratitude. (Or, You Guys! I Actually Met a Nice Boy!)
“To be fully seen by somebody, then, and be loved anyhow – this is a human offering that can border on miraculous.” ~Elizabeth Gilbert Of all the things I could possibly be thankful for this year, acceptance is at the top of my list. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I am not a perfect person. And I …
Let’s Talk About Anxiety. Or, Why I Almost Dropped Out Of Graduate School Eight Hundred Times.
“Follow your inner moonlight; don’t hide the madness.” ~Allen Ginsberg Let’s talk about anxiety. While I was in graduate school studying acupuncture and Chinese medicine, I started having panic attacks multiple times a week, forcing me to excuse myself from class for extended “bathroom breaks”, often feeling unable to return for as long as an hour at a time. There …
How Much Slack Is Too Much Slack? Or, What I Learned From My Mom About Being a Badass.
“Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for. Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.” ~Maya Angelou, Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now Where’s the line between pushing yourself too hard and cutting yourself too much slack? This is a question I’ve been asking …
You Guys! Somebody Hijacked My Blog and Wrote About Marriage! Ok, Fine. It Was Me.
“Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.” ~ Erich Fromm Want to learn (and relearn) a lesson in accepting what is? Attend several weddings over the course of just a few years as a single woman in her late 20s and early 30s — so single, in fact, that your wedding invitations during this time …
Mercury Went Retrograde and Apparently Found All Of My Exes There. Because I Obviously Needed Another Lesson In Forgiveness. Also: Puppies!
“Rather than letting our negativity get the better of us, we could acknowledge that right now we feel like a piece of shit and not be squeamish about taking a good look.” ~ Pema Chödrön, When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times About a month ago, I came down with the flu and spent four solid days shuffling …
What You Want Is What You Want. Until What You Want Is Something Else.
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” ~ E.E. Cummings Ten years ago, the things I thought I wanted were vastly different from the things I know today that I desire. In June 2004, I had just received a bachelor’s degree in English Literature, with dreams of pursuing a master’s degree in creative writing, living …
This Post Is Dedicated To The Women In My Life Who Are Brave And Beautiful And Kick Some Major Ass. You Know Who You Are.
“I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life’s a bitch. You’ve got to go out and kick ass.” ~ Maya Angelou Several years ago, I entered into an intimate relationship with a boy I absolutely adored and, in the process, sort of inadvertently abandoned every other relationship I’d cultivated in my …
Go Ride Your Damn Bike. And Other Important Spiritual Lessons. (Or, I Wrote Another Post About Dating. It Might Be Time For An Intervention.)
“Beware of allowing a tactless word, a rebuttal, a rejection to obliterate the whole sky” ~ Anaïs Nin Confession: I’m kind of a fixer. I love to smooth things over. Tie up loose ends. Come to a reasonable and harmonious solution that magically satisfies everyone involved. Wrap it all up in a neat little package so that nobody gets hurt …
How You Relate To Your Body Is How You Relate To The World. Because Writing About Dating Wasn’t Personal Enough So I Thought I’d Give Body Image A Try.
“The body is our general medium for having a world.” ~ Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Phenomenology of Perception To say that my relationship with my body has been strained is to understate the reality of things quite a bit. In fact, this relationship has probably been the most challenging and heartbreaking and life-changing relationship of which I have ever been a part. …