I’ve been doing some deep grief work this past month. I didn’t even realize it at first. Three weeks ago I pulled an intercostal muscle under my right breast that went all the way around my back. It was painful to raise my arm, and it especially hurt when I coughed or sneezed. Driving and steering exacerbated it, so I mostly stayed home, resting, and...
Read MoreMabel Love
It is with the heaviest heart that I share that we had to put Mabel to sleep last Friday. We celebrated her 14th birthday on August 1, and a week later, she was suddenly moving slower, eating less, sleeping more. Her belly was distended and she was all wobbly and couldn’t easily get up and down. We are not ones to prolong an animal’s pain and suffering,...
Read MoreThe Wisdoms of Cupcake Laurie Foley
My friend Laurie is dying. While I have lost two childhood friends to cancer, Laurie is the first friend who I have walked the path with, even if it has been mostly virtually. I met Laurie Foley online in 2012 through a network of Martha Beck coaches. She was a branding expert with a very smart blog that helped me see new possibilities for marketing...
Read MoreThe Friend Who Knew Me
Several weeks ago I found out that my very first childhood friend had suddenly died. Though we hadn’t seen each other since we were thirteen, we’d recently connected on Facebook and the loss struck me deep and hard. She was one of the last friends who knew me as a child, before my brother died. I met Ellen in nursery school. She had a playhouse fort...
Read MoreThe Whole of the Heart
As you know, I’m spending the month of November getting reacquainted with my creative heart. It is great fun to hang out in the studio, tearing images from magazines and calendars, playing with patterns and colors and composition. I’ve also been shaping flying birds out of newspaper and sketching sculptures that I imagine building with found...
Read More