My life from age twelve asked, “Can I trust you?” I asked myself this of every human being I encountered, particularly males. Everyone became suspect, even God. I fear I am not alone in my questioning. You have been hurt, have you not? Your trust has been shaken by sickness, circumstance, or sin in the …
The Wrong Side of the Bed
Amelia has never been a great sleeper but at two, her inconsolable acid hours gravitated from evenings to mornings. You just never know whether she will wake all smiles, thoroughly rested and ready for the day or refuse breakfast with wails and sobs that defy consolation. Some mornings she just wakes up on the wrong …
Biting Isn’t For Babies
Toddler silliness can quickly escalate to ugliness. Hitting, pushing, or biting seem to come out of nowhere but if you’re paying attention, it has usually been building gradually toward a crescendo. Either both want to do the same thing or simply don’t want the other to do it. The most recent incident involved opening the …
An Unqualified Yes
On Wednesday, March 24, 2021, five months into my cancer treatment and three-quarters of the way through my chemotherapy, my website, http://www.afittingreply.com went live. I chose the longest possible commitment period- ten years- and paid in advance to secure my website. I committed to posting twice weekly. There have been days like today when I …
No More Wasted Time
When our kids aren’t sleeping or eating appropriately, we look at what’s going on in the moment to try and find a reason. The problem, however, most likely stems from something further back than we tend to look. Maybe they were exposed to a germ last week that has been working against their little systems. …
Same But Different
Four grandchildren, similar in so many ways, bear traces of genetic code passed through familial lines from our forebears beyond the five generations for which I can account. I am so much Myrtle passed through David to me, but I am also Ansel through Joyce. The lines expand each time a marriage happens and the …
This Is Hard
Thomas puked in the car again, effectively destroying a third car seat in his three short years. When I asked if he felt like he needed to be sick, he said, “I don’t,” but, according to his mom, commenting from the driver’s seat afterwards, he meant, “I don’t want to!” Then he did. He retched …
Angels Unaware
Thomas turns three today but he doesn’t live in town so we celebrated his birthday early at the zoo. We saw some animals, rode the carousel, and hiked a mile uphill to hit the splash pad before lunch. It was hot, mighty hot, so we lingered over lunch and walked through the aquarium before heading …
Believe It Or Not
“I want to see the barn!” said Amelia for the fifteenth time. She watches to a video about a farm with a barn and there is a cow and chickens. We were visiting my parents for the day and her dad had gone to the barn with my dad to work on his lawnmower. I …
More Than Curious
I’ve enjoyed a small herb garden on my kitchen table several times over the past few years, but in my current season when staying over with new grand babies takes precedence, the herbs, with the exception of a lone basil plant, have gone by the wayside. I had hoped that placing them out front where …
A Fitting Reply 