Just yesterday, my granddaughter Anna came to me and said, “Let’s go for a bike ride.” While this is an activity that she always enjoys for its own sake, I could see that the suggestion was coming from a place of stress. Some bullying had been happening in her...
Even though Thanksgiving has passed, the importance of gratitude goes on. One thing we can be thankful for this holiday season is a COVID vaccine on the near horizon. While it won’t bring an instant return to normalcy – Dr. Fauci has said it may be mid-2021 at...
“Knowing just burdens my heart,” said my longtime friend, an elementary school teacher in eastern Oregon. “I have 26 other babies to take care of!” Over the years, I’ve heard many other teachers express the same sense of overwhelm. With all the demands placed on them...
Though the US has only 5% of the world’s population, it accounts for 80% of global opioid use. Over 11 million Americans abuse these drugs, and more than 130 die every day. Yet it’s not just the users who suffer damage. Many of those users are pregnant women. Once the...
You know the feeling…you’re floating along on a lazy late summer day, then suddenly hear the rumbling of rapids ahead. The frenzy and chaos that accompanies the beginning of the school year are dead ahead! But instead of just plowing bravely ahead, like...