Because in Euphoria the men are taking their turn — I’m watching Euphoria right now. People warned me against it because I have a seventeen-year-old daughter. I’ve heard people say that it glorifies drug use and casual sex. As a mother, it is horrifying to watch, but besides the Molly, Fentanyl, excessive drinking, and access to prescription pills, the thing…

The evolution of memory — This past week I went to Chicago to spend time with my mother and stepfather. My mother is 80 and my stepfather is 93. About fifteen years ago they moved to a 100-unit apartment a block from the house where I grew up. …

Contemplating the middle ground — For the last year, I have been working as a contact tracer. This is not my life’s passion, it was just a stop-gap job to transition from selling my business. I wanted a job and the pandemic was on in full force so it worked out. About ten months into…

A time-limited period of temporary insanity — My stepfather had a friend who described adolescence as, “a temporary period of insanity followed by an excellent prognosis.” Menopause is a lot like this. Big and little shifts happen and if we don’t remind ourselves that we are in a period of temporary insanity, it can feel totally overwhelming. …

Understanding menopause — About five years ago, my friend Kate and I birthed the organization Launch Your Pause. We created and hosted a three-day retreat, Put Some Claws in Your Pause, offering women at all stages of menopause an opportunity to learn about, explore and celebrate all things menopause. …

Memories sparked by a morning poem — I read a poem every morning. I used to struggle to read poetry. I wanted to like it, but I couldn’t understand it. I committed to reading each poem twice, some stanzas that felt really foreign to me I’d read aloud. After many months of reading a poem every morning…

Is there a way to wash them away? — My family has a secret. It’s an old secret that we’ve buried and reburied over and over again through the years. The secret is too big to share. …

Picking weeds, planting inspiration — I’ve never been a good help in our garden. I’m a fair-weather gardener — I like to play around in my vegetable garden and mow the lawn but I can’t be counted on to help with the maintenance of weeding. The truth is I’m lazy. As much as I say…

We have to keep fighting for gun control — Driving home from work last week I heard the news of the Uvalde shooting. “14 kids,” I heard the announcer say. A flood of nausea hit me and I slowed down, looking for a place to pull over. It was too much. Too much like watching the World Trade towers…