Tag: life lessons
-
How Did the Pandemic Change Your Friendships?
This post is an excerpt from my latest story for HelloGiggles, “Is This Normal? I Talk Less to My Friends and I’m Happy” Dear Is This Normal?, It’s no secret that the pandemic has changed our lives. But now, with vaccines available and everything starting to open back up, I’ve spent a long time wondering…
-
5 Things to Consider When You Think You Can’t Do It
It’s possible you’re already doing it, whatever your it is. Or that you’ve already done it in some past variation. It’s a matter of continuing to do the hard thing you thought you could never do. Breathing always helps. Find someone who reminds you how to take deep breaths when it feels like you’re sucking…
-
Gardening in the Rain
In case you’re wondering, our garden is still growing weeds. I’m learning that this is how it goes (so they say): you pull the weeds, they’re gone; then the weeds grow back, and you’re down in the dirt again.
-
I Want to Become the Friend Who Remembers Birthdays
Every month, I hope that I will wake up changed, a new woman, suddenly transformed into the thoughtful person I want to be—the friend who remembers birthdays. It’s sort of like how every day, my cat climbs on the back of my reclining zero gravity chair on my porch. And every day, she hopes that…
-
The Power of the Vacuum
Today she gets to decide: push the vacuum up and down, or side to side? How does she want it to turn out? It’s entirely up to her.
-
Lost Socks on Laundry Day
My husband (who affectionately calls me the Laundry Fairy) says his socks are missing. I remember hearing tales of lost socks from others who were living in a different chapter and carried far heavier loads than I did as a single person. Where could it have possibly gone? I always wondered. (How did your life…
-
Our Secret Garden
Our garden is growing weeds. We don’t know what to expect in these garden beds because we weren’t the ones who planted them. We inherited them when we bought the house in the dead of winter, bare trees and frosted beds. So I’ve been waiting and watching, checking each morning to see what pops up,…
-
Rain, rain, go away
Our cats have full roaming access to the whole house, and yet, all they want is a deep dive into the kitchen sink. We spray the water bottle, stomp our feet, clap our hands, put on stern voices, NO! GET! DOWN! BAD!, we’ve tried it all. J even became the blanket monster, draping the fuzzy…
-
You Don’t Know the Whole Story
Once, I thought I knew it all. I thought my story was sadder than anyone else’s story. I thought my family had endured more than anyone else’s, but that was just our little secret to carry around. Psh, if only you knew. And by “once” I mean a million times. This is an easy habit…
-
How to Win the Day
Last night: chips and salsa, tacos, and sangria with my longest best friends. One declares she’s learning to wait. (A fist pounded on the table to mark the historical moment.) She’s the decision-maker of the team, so we cocked our heads a little bit, squinted, because this whole waiting to make a decision thing will…
Ashley Fenker 