“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re Doing Something. So that’s my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody’s ever made before. Don’t freeze, don’t stop, [...]
New Beginnings
I am surprised and humbled by mother’s strength. Late in life, she is beginning again. My mom, for the last four months, is living independently in her own apartment. And for those who don’t know her, this may not seem like an extraordinary feat. But it is. In so many ways. My mom married when she was 21 years old. After living with her parents all her life, she became a wife and mother. In doing so, she never had [...]
When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love. Marcus Aurelius Last weekend the mountains welcomed me at dawn. The sun played hide-and-seek with nature and her surroundings. I glanced up and caught a peak of the beginnings of a golden waterfall. In that moment, I took a breath, inhaled and exhaled, and listened to the birds, looked up at the light blue [...]
It was a conversation I didn’t expect. It happened almost a year ago. On a bright summer Sunday afternoon my family decided to attend the back to school bash at a friend’s house. The anticipation of this event drew us in, my daughter counting down the seconds until she could swim in the pool with all her friends. As soon as we parked the car, she ripped off her dress like a superhero and underneath emerged a blue peace sign [...]
Every set of eyes were looking at her. Even my own. Her blue sari sparkled and the hints of copper beads glistened in the light. The stage swallowed her, but my mother was not discouraged. She surprised me. Without hesitation, she delivered an emotional speech to over two hundred fifty guests at my sister’s wedding reception. This was an unusual feat for my mom. For the first time in her life, she chose to speak publicly to a very large [...]
Stop. I begged myself to stop, but the tears formed in the corners. I tried to lift my head up, with the hope that I could prevent the river from flowing down my cheeks. Stop. But I didn’t. Strong. Be strong. These are the words I repeated over and over, as I witnessed the marriage of my sister and her now husband. As her feet turned the corner after the fourth vow, I felt a foray into a beginning and [...]
I am in my hometown of Dallas to attend and celebrate my sister’s wedding. So much of the city seems wholly familiar -the green lush grass, the fullness of trees sprinkled with flowers that look like specks of confetti, the Southern twang ringing in the word ya’ll, and the sense of comfort knowing that you are in the place where you were born. But there are other seconds when I don’t recognize home. My connection to “home” is muted. Yesterday [...]
“Life seems to flood by, taking our loves quickly in its flow. In the growth of children, in the aging of beloved parents, time’s chart is magnified, showing in its particularity, focused so that with each celebration of maturity there is also a pang of loss. This our human problem, one common to parents, sons and daughters, too-how to let go while holding tight, how to simultaneously cherish the closeness and intricacy of the bond while at the same time [...]
My fingers shook, the palms of my hand screamed sweat and anxiety. I cursed the dial-up modem of my computer. My mom was standing over my shoulder wondering what the digital screen would reveal. “Ugh, so slow. Not now. I can’t wait much longer.” I flipped the ends of my hair in a twist, somehow convincing myself if I continued to do this, the internet connection would move faster. Typing with purpose, I pressed on the keys fast until I [...]
I hear the faint sound of morning peeking into our bedroom window. I know the golden coins of sunshine will hit the pavement soon. First, there is the stray car, a honk of the horn, and the crunch of the gravel as an early someone walks their dog on the street. Sinking into my sheets, I hear the deep sigh from my daughter, one that indicates dreams of playing in the sand, talking loudly with her friends, and running from [...]
