I am not one of those people who gets offended when you ask her age. (47, in case you’re wondering.) I think it’s silly to get bent out of shape. We are the age we are, and God willing, we’ve gained wisdom with age. I take my cue from my paternal grandmother. Once, she told…
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Age, Wisdom, and The Tradeoff
Even in high school, I thought people were insane when they said, “These are the best days of your life.” If this is as good as it gets, I thought, I might as well just give up right now. Now, don’t get me wrong. Three of four years of high school I enjoyed very much.…
Read MoreThe Courage Not To Hide His Smile
He hides his smiles. Or at least, he tries. He can’t say for sure why he does it. But at some deep level in my soul I think I understand, because he is so much like me. He’s self-conscious, and he’s trying to be humble. Always, one or both of those things comes into play.…
Read MoreThe Guilt We Cling To
No one has ever criticized me for being a work-from-home mom. Not even once. And yet I go through a periodic…cyclical, perhaps?…festival of self-loathing. My house isn’t clean enough. My kids’ personal habits and academic/physical/fill-in-the-blank achievements aren’t enough. My flower beds aren’t pretty enough. My life is a long series of “should-have”‘s, and if only…
Read MoreMany Gifts, One Body: a first grade lesson
Alex didn’t have a good last day of school. Silly school, they thought all the kids would enjoy a non-uniform day filled with nothing but outdoor games. (Well. And Mass. Can’t begin or end a school year without that.) Alex thought he was going to enjoy it too, until he fell down in a three-legged…
Read MoreWe Are Not Rugged Individualists
A couple of weeks ago, I posted a piece of fiction called “Makeover.” It’s about a woman whose life is a mess–grown son dead, marriage in shambles. When she sees her reflection in a storefront, she realizes she doesn’t recognize herself anymore–and she goes to do something about it. The most thought-provoking comment I received…
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Kathleen M. Basi 