New-gf glow and sun-soaked selfies hid Dad’s first subtle slide. I ignored my gut, but Ch. 19 won’t let me look away from the skid marks I pretended not to see.
Lies Louder than Truth: the Quiet Cost of Love
I swallowed the truth so Dad could heal; she cranked up the blame, too busy guarding her version to bother with his recovery.
So Your Ex Thinks You’re a Demon: the Myth of Breakup Closure
If closure is what you’re after, lower your expectations. Cuz it turns out, over-enthusiasm isn’t caulk, and some breakups end with a demon instead of a reason.
We Beastly Women: Mythical Metaphors
We Beastly Women don’t always roar—sometimes we sheath our claws and burn anyway.
Protecting Dad’s Feelings Cost Me My Own
I thought protecting Dad’s feelings was right. It wasn’t. It was quiet self-abandonment. If you tiptoe around someone’s feelings long enough, you lose your own.
I’ll Share, Probably: Smells like ’99
Mom found Dad’s old glove and sent me a picture. Cue memory flood, guilt spiral, and eventual semi-enlightenment. I might even let Libby have it. That’s growth, right?
The Mirror Shows His Face (And It’s Mine)
What if the habits I judged in my dad are the ones I’m building for myself? Writing is my salvation—but could it also be my cave?
Facing Medusa in Memoir: the Memoirist’s Gaze
If I can’t talk to you, at least I can try to see you better. Sometimes, writing is the only way to reach the truth.
Mantra, Mother, Mirror: Happy Mother’s Day
2 poems, 1 heartbeat. One traces the compass Mom slipped beneath my ribs; the other salutes Libbs on her 1st Mother’s Day. Love moves down the line, invincible.
Baptism by Floundering
From the edge of a boardwalk, o’er the Canal, where a new Barbie rod caught its first & last fish before being abandoned forevermore. (Cue the melodrama.)