You are forty now, and maybe you don’t feel it. Haven’t had the time for your age to sink into your bones. Forty. You still feel thirty-nine, Sometimes eighty, Those days you try to do it all. Be everything for everyone at all times. Just remember: two more years and you’ll find the meaning of ...

During my youth, planning my future was a full-time job. I dreamed of every detail. I knew I wanted to be a mother. God’s plan was never in doubt for me. I created timelines in my head for my perfectly normal life. The straight path we would follow. Instead, we are on a twisty, dark ...

Why should I be Afraid to die? There’s no pain, When it’s done, Of any kind. What I fear instead Is running Out of time Waiting— Waiting— For my words to shine. There’s a story In the news About a man Who lost his hands And an accident Where someone went blind. What could I do If ...

First it was cramps Grinding, debilitating cramps Tying my abdomen in An impossible sailor’s knot And out came the heating pad— A thick, orange water bottle— And the plug-in blanket, The rice sack that smelled like Lavender in the microwave Double socks Double blankets Pain, searing hot showers 48 hours of misery. After I had ...

I tip-toe among the little crittersThat wriggle and flitter  Along our shared grassy track  They like to stop and have a chat  And proudly pose for a photo  When I am on my tummy down low  Today I met a beetle called Bertha A lady who was frank and earthy And like my grandma, her family came first  She protected her offspring through ...

  I’d love to stay up there with youBut there is something I must doIt won’t matter how much you pull nowI will always break free somehow Can’t you see your grip is only making me feel numb?Let me show you how strong I have becomeI can live without the protection of your lovely silkIt ...

Motherhood is one crazy roller coaster of emotional ups and downs. While a handbook would be nice and often feels required, one does not exist.

My heart weeps silently          for the child                    I once carried My mind paralyzed          with fear of a reoccurrence                    but my body longs                             to be the vessel That carries your          fragile, tiny frame                    supporting you in                             my cracked container You fluttered and          my heart melted                    connecting ...

Trees and grass, the Bay mare’s protection One spring night.   Breathing heavily – No wind, No threat in sight.   Her colt lies beside her, Touching noses.

Who do you think you are? A question my mother liked to ask me when she was getting on to me. I use to stand there and wonder, who did she think I was? Yet, my shaky voice always answered back, “No one.” I really wanted to tell her that I was Chasity Anne Sifford, ...