This Mama’s Dharma

Ah, the bitter irony of this life. I was to have a full five days to myself while Sami was at his father’s. And what happens? The Snowpocalypse of 2009. All my plans to be a whirling dervish of activity, dashed.
It ended up being all good. I just so happened to have a wonderful house [...]

I hate the word “depression,” as I detest all clinical phrases. They serve to dehumanize and they also don’t get at what is really going on with people. A neat label does not begin to encapsulate the complexity of human existence, and I feel does it a disservice. But looking at the word depression in [...]

This is a very special time of year for me when New Age Mama comes out in full force.  It is the Aries New Moon - the astrological new year, so to speak.  A ritual that I began for the first time last year was to make what is called a “treasure map” - a [...]

This afternoon, on my way home early from work, throat burning, fever racking my body with chills, I listened to the most delightful dharma talk by Roshi Bernie Glassman, founder of the Zen Peacemaker Order.  I was struck so hard by something he said that my eyes welled up with appreciative tears:
“Take the ingredients you [...]

He doesn’t remember him.  
When he walked in the door, there was no “Daddy!”  No running to him.  No recognition.  Just a shyness.
“Who’s this, Sami?” I asked.  ”Who’s this man?”
No answer.
Periodically throughout the night, my ex tried to get Sami to call him by his name.
“You used to call me ‘Daddy,’” I heard him say [...]

Otherwise known as adventures in online dating…
Out of those 973 views on a particular online dating website that will not be named, I’ve had a few nibbles.  Last Saturday night there was a date with a very interesting person, a humanitarian, originally from Southeast Asia.  A shy, mad scientist-type who unfortunately did not have a clue about [...]

For the past few days I have been sitting with rejection.  I applied for a master nonfiction class at a local creative writing center, and got rejected.  By a former professor, no less!
To say that this initially caused me to feel like shit is an understatement.
But then I started to look at it another way: [...]

It seems that things always have a way of turning around so rapidly in my life.  Everything always works out, but of course I forget this truth when I most need to remember it. 
I decided to give the school another chance last Friday and Sami had a great day!  I called about halfway through the [...]