When I heard this headline I was shocked, but not really.  The story is a familiar one.  Child bullied.  Parent angry.  Blame.  Retribution sought.  Tempers flared.  Inflamed reactions.  It happens in schools, hockey rinks, playgrounds – anywhere children interact. We might agree that the parent who exerts her force against another child on behalf of [...]

I’m not a fan of the New Year’s Resolution ritual.  I find it unsavory practice to form intentions on cue as if it were as unquestionable a necessity as drinking water.  I admit I have an exaggerated distaste for a potentially positive practice.  But my experience with resolutions repeatedly demonstrates a set-up for failure.  Thus, I [...]

I remember the day I felt grown up for the first time.  I was 8 years old, spending the summer at a beach house.  Older friends had decided to walk to the local ice cream store – one that I had never been to without my parents.  I knew I wouldn’t be able to join [...]

“Mom, I NEED to talk to you.  I’m having friend problems.” Oh-oh.  Here we go.  Entering into familiar tween territory.  My youngest daughter entered third grade this year with such a definitive shift in awareness, attitude, and emotion, that I’m considering nominating her for tween poster child.  It’s as if my daughter’s eyes have been [...]

“Who does the mirror say I am?  Could I be like someone who matters even for a moment?  Chasing beautiful.” These words stopped me dead in my tracks when I first heard them sung by Heather Vassar.  In her song titled Chasing Beautiful Heather captures the desperation of a girl searching for her own beauty.  [...]