How to Live in the Face of Fear: Lessons From a Cancer Survivor – an interview with Kate Bowler by Elizabeth Dias (from the NYT) “There was a rhythm I got into with cancer that has served me well right now. Every day sort of has an arc to it. Thereβs a limited amount that …
Author Archives: A.C. Smith
Chrestomathy
Everything familiarOnce started As something foreign. We nibble atThe unknown,Chew and digestEach tiny bite. And gradually the tasteOf something strangeOr unpalatableBecomes somethingThat we crave. There was a timeWhen the thingsThat you love mostWere crypticAnd befuddling.Can you remember? Take a momentTo be gratefulTo the onesWho packaged experienceInto delectable parcelsTeasing us with the promiseOf bigger mysteries. Reading …
Insomnia companion, part 3: falling
If you can’t fall asleepWhere can you fall instead? Can you fall under the spellOf your own sleeplessness?Can you fall in loveWith some tiny traceOf beauty in the worldYou had never thought to notice? Can you feel the sensation in your bodyOf falling?Do you feel scared?Do you feel elated? There are places in our livesWhere …
Tiny steps
Yesterday, you reached out for my hand,Without even looking,Sure that I would be there. And for the first time,Instead of stepping forward to reassure you,I took the tiniest of steps away. Your hand reached out,But beneath it was air,I waited, and watched, just out of reach. You stood on the end of the playground slide,Where …
Looking backwards
Today, I was going back through old emails to check for any stray receipts as part of the process of preparing my US taxes. My inbox currently has 5,568 unread emails in it. When I worked in office jobs I was able to maintain inbox zero. But in my personal life, my inbox doubles as …
Visibly pregnant
I belong to a Facebook group of ‘Mothers Who Make’, and someone shared this inspiring post from Paloma Faith: π¨π ππ ππππ πΎππππΎππΎ ππ πΎπΊππππΎ π¨ πΊππππππΌπΎ π¨ πΊπ πππΎπππΊππ. π¨ πΊπ πππππ ππ π»πΎ ππΎπ πΎπΊππππ ππΎπ πππππΌ πΊπ ππππ ππππΎ πΊππ½ ππΊπππΎπ½ ππ πΏπΎπΎπ πΏππΎπΎ ππ ππ π»ππ½π πΊπ ππ πΌππΊπππΎπ π»πΎπΏπππΎ πΊπ π πππ πΎππΎπ! …
The best advice I ever got on parenting
Back when my sister was expecting her baby, one of the things they did was get everyone to share their best piece of parenting advice. I still find myself thinking about this on a regular basis. The best advice I got came from a taxi driver. He had a young child who he loved deeply, …
How do we heal?
How do we heal? When we are torn,We know that invisible forcesWork to put us back together again. We look at the changesAnd think it is just the magic of time,When really, a million microscopic momentsAnd tiny actions have come togetherTo create a web that holds our bodies together,To repair what has been broken,To restore …
This is how to pick the perfect exercise for you
This post was inspired by my mom. She was talking about what it’s like being a woman in her 60’s, trying to stay healthy and active. And she gave me the greatest tip for choosing a form of exercise. Instead of looking at the young people who are involved in whatever you are thinking about, …
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Blackberries
I was too prickly, too wild,Too thorny, too demanding,Too aggressive,Too unruly,Too chaotic,Too big. Maybe if I hadn’t grown quite so high,Or foolishly trailed my branches down to the ground,Maybe if I had stayed exactly at eye-levelIn easy reach… Maybe if I had smoothed away my sharpness,Pared back my leaves,Plumped my juicy fruit,Or curled appealingly into …