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For My Grandparents on Their 76th Wedding Anniversary
As of today, June 27th, 2018, my grandparents have been married for 76 years. 76. YEARS. While that number sinks in, I’ll share a story about the day the two of them met. He introduced himself as Andy...
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For My Daughter On Her Birthday
On July 14th, 1999, you made me complete. A nurse slipped you into my arms (all four pounds, fourteen ounces of sticky skin and soft bone), and I looked down at your tiny face and knew you for my own....
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Spontaneity Revisited (Like Brideshead, except with spontaneity. And also not...
You know the old saying If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it? (I think it’s Lucille Ball’s wisdom—and I totally love her—but please.) Don’t ask me to do your something. Not that I’m...
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A Christmas Poem (back by popular-ish demand)
‘Twas two weeks before Christmas, 2018, And every Gardner was here on the scene. Karly and Jack had both flown home from college, With luggage and laundry and (probably) knowledge! Karly’s picked...
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The Heavy Bag
My sister Nancy tells the story about a time when her boys were under two years old and, as mothers of young children often do to keep from going insane, she visited a friend. Besides her two sons,...
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The 100-Year Story
These past few months have been pretty crazy around here. Some high-highs and some low-lows. Milestones and heartbreak. (I’m not gonna lie. There’s still a lump in my throat and I get teary-eyed...
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Kindness First
I work at the public library. More specifically, I’m a monitor for two branches in the city of Thousand Oaks. I consider this work, like my previous career as a public school teacher, to be a...
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Please Excuse the Typo
It’s possible that, as a writer, I’ve spent the past twelve years obsessed with typos. In posts. In tweets. In manuscripts. It’s also possible that, as a human, I’ve spent my entire life avoiding...
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What Do You WANT to Believe About Yourself?
Some things about me are facts: I’m 5’ 6” and I have blue eyes. I stopped coloring my hair five-ish years ago, so I’ve got some grays. I’m married with two kids and three dogs. We all live in Thousand...
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Room on the Boat
One year ago we brought this puppy home. Her mother—a stray Lab —had birthed her babies on the side of a freeway and hidden them in nearby bushes. After they were rescued and settled in a foster home,...
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