• body
    Body

    Body Memory: Relearning Safe and Happy

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    That our body can retain memory is probably no surprise to most women. We look at our grown children and remember the sweet weight of their infant bodies in our arms and how soft their little cheeks were to kiss.  Thanksgiving is upon us and our mouths water remembering familiar holiday dishes or when the fragrance of pumpkin pie fills the house. The highway between smell and memory is a short one. But the tendency to store memories in our body can work against us, causing anxiety or dread to pop up in unexpected and inconvenient places. For me, to…

  • monologues
    Featured - Monologues

    Escape the Monologues: The Stories that Trap Us

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    On my way to work one day, I saw a stray dog. A greyhound mix, he was trotting along the road, his ribs showing through his thin coat. A large black tumorous growth protruded from his side. I stopped my car and got out. I called to him to come, but he just stood there, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. When he started to run again, I followed him. He stopped. I called. He ran. This happened a few times before I realized that I could not interrupt his mindset. Never once did he make eye contact with…

  • simple
    Featured

    Leaving Simple Behind: Embracing Complexity

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    “God keeps telling me Keep it simple. Keep it simple.” The father of the groom told me this as we drove to the wedding in which I was to be a matron of honor. At that moment, it sounded kind of wise. He was a Christian and seemed like a nice guy. Except what he didn’t tell me was that he had spent the morning arguing with his daughter about whether or not to bring the woman with whom he was having an affair to the reception. To this day, I cannot imagine anything that would be more hurtful to…