A commitment to the unfolding — I’ve been dreaming about physical difficulties; in one dream, I could not see well enough to care for my children. In another, I could hardly move. These dreams are not hard to read, given my recent heart stent surgery. I’m processing that event night and day. It was so frightening…

Let them teach you in their unique way I’m heading into the dark times with the intention of resting, instead of becoming depressed. I’ve come to this after a lifetime of suffering from SAD, seasonal affective disorder. The holidays for me aren’t the fun, sparkly time they’re supposed to be…

An approach to aging — My father’s house flooded recently and destroyed enough books to fill his 2-car garage 5 feet deep. He hired a dumpster and four strong young people. Frankly, I was relieved. And before you think I’m heartless, hear the story. My family has a genetic propensity toward hoarding. Growing up in…

My body sent me a message I’m fat. Since early childhood, I’ve identified as a fat person. I look at childhood pictures and I don’t look fat at all, but at the time, I thought I was incredibly big. My family perpetuated this conception of myself. They considered themselves fat…

My heroes and saviors In the ER bed after a harrowing ambulance ride, I felt my heart tighten painfully and I tried not to panic. I figured I was dying, and it wasn’t going according to plan. If I had my druthers I’d die sometime in the faraway future, in…

Here’s what it means to be fascist — Do you know what you’re flirting with, Republicans? Yeah, maybe you vote Republican because you don’t like gay marriage and liked it better when gays were closeted. Maybe you wish they’d just stop being so OUT in the open. But do you want them dead? Do you want the military…

Societal injustice in your own backyard It’s a constant in all the cities I’ve seen, large and small. A homeless encampment is “swept up” using earthmoving equipment. It’s a police action as part of a movement to “take back” the parks for innocent children. …

Hello, I’m… — a book on its back in the rain, a wrinkled confusion of split orange — enter the telescoping centrifuge of conflicting information culminating in nothing but a residue, a fine mist on your face. Possibly you’ve met an abandoned spider web, evidence only of a small being traveling from one…