Confession time: my weekend trip to see my sister in NYC involved a distinct lack of geographical prowess on my part. I took the highway, as one does, a rainy four-hour slog punctuated by a lovely phone call with a friend. But somewhere in the nebulous land of NJ just outside the city, my focus…
Roses and Sunflowers
A few months ago, there was a fire in the restaurant next door to my apartment. That was the day I learned that, at the threat of my cat being in a burning building, this fat girl can, and will, run. I also learned what my most prized possession is. They say that whatever you…
A Tale from Arcadia, Revisited
“I wont…Kansas….cold button red venne-mutton.” Word Salad. This was how we referred to the speech patterns of the people in the unit who can no longer make meaningful sentences out of words. From 2011 until 2014, I worked in a locked unit for dementia patients who were no longer able to care for themselves. I…
Trumpets in the Cemetery
Because of the jobs I’ve had, I’ve lived in some pretty…interesting…. places. I’ve lived walk up apartments in the city, townhouses in the suburbs, basement studios in small towns, in a yurt [which was WAY too close to roughing it for my liking], and once, in an actual house, in the city of Flemington, NJ.…
Count the Stars
I'm laying in my bed staring at the stars. Not at the stars outside my window... The stars on my ceiling. Yes, I am a grown-ass, almost 40 year old woman, and I have glow in the dark stars pasted all over my ceiling. They remind me of my childhood. When I was a teenager,…
Just STOP.
STOP. I just want to STOP. Stop running around. Stop working so hard. Stop being perpetually behind. Stop being so anxious. Stop worrying. Stop caring so much. Stop. JUST STOP. I want the madness of the world to just STOP. Stop the shootings. Stop the racism. Stop the oppression. Stop the violence. Stop the sexism.…
Moving To Maine
This piece was written for a Story Slam I'll be participating in this evening. If you can join us at Create-a-Palooza on High St. in Carlisle at 7 PM, you'll get to see me perform this live, along with other people sharing their stories about "bosses". I was 20 years old the first time I…
Taking Stock of What I Have and What I Haven’t…
Taking stock of what I have and what I haven't What do I find? The things I got will keep me satisfied Checking up on what I have and what I haven't What do I find? A healthy balance on the credit side... It's that time of year when I find myself taking stock of…
Before We Disappear
I became a better person because of Alzheimer's disease. I had the rare privilege of working in the dementia unit of a nursing home for several years. The lives I encountered there were unique. Their stories both heartbreaking and life-affirming. Those five years were some of the hardest years of my life, personally. I had…
A Visit to Ground Zero
“I don't think that I'll ever be 'dulled' when it comes to the vividness of what I’ve seen at ground zero, especially on that first day If one could ever glimpse hell.....but also, community at it's truest form....if one could ever glimpse heaven......” I wrote those words on October 11, 2001, just after returning from…
VoyagersHeart 