Hi Friends, Tuesday Thoughts and the Red Flags We Explain Away Maybe you've been in a relationship where you noticed things that didn't feel quite right, but you weren't sure what to call them. Maybe you've already left a relationship and, looking back, you can see things more clearly now. Or, perhaps you're starting a new relationship and want to be a little more aware of the things that deserve your attention. Whatever season you're in, red flags aren't always big, obvious

Hi Friends, I have a junk drawer. You probably do, too. You know the one. The drawer you open when you need a rubber band, a pen, a battery, or that little screwdriver you know is somewhere in there. You pull it open and immediately wonder how one drawer managed to become the final resting place for approximately 47 unrelated objects. There are probably a few mystery keys in there. Nobody knows what they open anymore, but throwing them away feels strangely dangerous. There mi

Hi Friends, There was always something about Dolly Parton that made it impossible not to smile. The big hair, the rhinestones, the humor, the confidence. Dolly never seemed interested in shrinking herself to make anyone else comfortable. But underneath all that sparkle was something even more impressive: a woman who worked incredibly hard, stayed true to herself, and never forgot where she came from. One of my favorite Dolly quotes is, “Don’t get so busy making a living that

Hi Friends, A Belief is a Tool Have you ever noticed how powerful the two little words “I am” can be? Whatever comes after them has a way of shaping how we see ourselves, how we behave, and even what we believe is possible for us. I am not good at this. I am a failure. I am strong. I am too old. I am capable. I am creative. I am not enough. We often treat these statements as facts. But what if a belief is actually a tool? And what if we get to decide whether the tool we are u

Hi Friends, Tuesday Thoughts: When I Was 18 When I was 18 or 19, I was in 13th grade in Germany and had chosen art as one of my majors. I loved having a class where we could create something instead of simply memorizing something. One day, our art teacher gave us an assignment I still remember all these years later. We had to draw a self-portrait. In ink. And then we had to choose a symbol that represented us, or something we believed in. I wish I could show you the drawing.

Hi Friends, I recently watched a short social media skit that has stayed with me ever since. In it, a woman tells her partner, "I'm sad." He barely looks up, brushes it off with something like, "You'll be fine," and goes back to what he was doing. There was no curiosity, no follow-up question, no invitation for her to share more. So she opens ChatGPT instead. She types, "I'm sad." The response is immediate: "I'm so sorry you're feeling that way. Do you want to tell me what's

Hi friends, I am on a roll with quotes lately. Here is one that inspired me as well: "You never know what will become one of your favorite memories." Usually these moments don't announce themselves,there isn't dramatic music playing. No one tells us, "Pay attention. You're going to miss this someday." It's just another Tuesday. Isn't that a song as well? Let’s say you're sipping coffee on the porch before the day begins. You feed the cats, walk the dog, and you watch the bird

Hi Friends, "How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." — A.A. Milne As a German transplant to the United States, I've learned that making friends isn't usually the hardest part. Keeping them close can be. When I first moved here at 21, I imagined friendships would naturally become lifelong relationships. But over the years, I discovered something that seems especially common in America—people move. They relocate for new jobs, retirement, family, or

Hi friends, Last night I watched the movie Wild, based on Cheryl Strayed's true story. If you haven't seen it, it's about far more than a woman hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. It's about grief. Regret. Bad decisions. Healing. And finding yourself one difficult step at a time. When the movie ended, I realized I wasn't quite finished with Cheryl's story. I found myself searching for an interview with her because I needed to know more. I wanted to see the woman behind the journe

Hi Friends, Tuesday Thoughts and... Not So Fast The FIFA World Cup has brought people from all over the world to the United States this summer. Before they arrived, many had already formed opinions about what they would find. News headlines, social media, and stories from others had painted a picture, some exciting, some not so flattering.I listen to German news sometimes, as I grew up in that country, and they don't agree with most of the US politics at the moment. But they

Hi Friends, I recently came across several quotes by the German author Elke Heidenreich that spoke to me. They weren't dramatic or overly sentimental, yet they carried a quiet wisdom that only seems to come from someone who has lived a full life. At 81 years old, Heidenreich doesn't write about aging with sadness or longing for the past. Instead, she speaks with remarkable honesty about accepting what has been, embracing what is, and continuing to find joy, curiosity, and pu

Hi Friends, The Woman Who Never Existed Have you ever caught yourself wishing you had someone else's eyes? Or admired another woman's thick hair, toned arms, radiant smile, or effortless style? We rarely compare ourselves to just one person. Instead, we collect little pieces from many women and somehow expect ourselves to become all of them.It turns out this isn't a new habit. There's an ancient story about the Greek artist, Zeuxis, who was commissioned to paint Helen of Troy

Hi Friends, What If We Created A "How I Want to Feel" List ? Most of us are experts at making to-do lists. We know what needs to get done before breakfast, before lunch, and before we finally sit down at the end of the day. Pay bills. Fold laundry. Answer messages. Make appointments. Cross things off. Repeat tomorrow. But lately, I've been wondering if we've become so focused on what to do that we've forgotten to ask ourselves something equally important: How do I want to f

Hi Friends, What the World Cup Reminds Me About Us Every four years, something remarkable happens. People from all over the world gather around televisions, crowd into sports bars, wear their country's colors, and cheer with all their hearts for a game. This year, the FIFA World Cup brings together 48 nations from six continents, each with its own language, culture, history, traditions, and way of seeing the world. And yet, for ninety minutes, they're all playing by the same

Hi Friends, My Summer Plans (and None of Them Involve a Yacht) Last week I wrote about giving ourselves permission to be bad at something. Well, now I have a problem. I may actually have to take my own advice. Summer is here, and while I don't have any grand plans, I do have a growing list of things I'd like to try. Not because they'll change my life. Not because they'll make me money. Not because they'll look impressive on social media. Just because they sound fun. For examp

Hi Friends, Somewhere along the way, many of us adults decided that if we weren't naturally good at something, we probably shouldn't do it. As children, we didn't think that way. We fell off bicycles. We misspelled words. We sang off-key. We tried, failed, laughed, and tried again. But as adults, being a beginner can feel uncomfortable. We want to know what we're doing. We want to look competent. We don't want to make mistakes. The problem is that a lot of the best things in

Hi Friends, The Quiet Magic We Miss The other day I came across a little video that completely pulled me out of my own thoughts for a minute. It listed these tiny, fascinating things about animals and nature, and I found myself smiling the entire time. Not because they were life-changing facts but because they reminded me that this world is still full of wonder. And honestly, after some heavier reflections lately about motherhood, midlife, growing pains, and all the emotions

Hi Friends, This week I want to piggy back on last week’s Mother’s Day blog. Every one feels different about how to mother the best way. Even with the same parenting style you can end up with very different results. I realized that kids can’t be programmed, they are meant to be themselves and we are supposed to help them unfold, not fit them in a box. I tried that. And I made a lot of mistakes. I did a lot right, but I missed a lot, too. There really isn’t a big moment, or

Hi Friends, This week I want to share some thoughts about moms. Mother’s Day can bring up so many emotions, especially in midlife. For some women, it is a day filled with laughter, phone calls, flowers, and crowded tables. For others, it can feel quieter, more complicated, or even lonely. I think it is important to remember that motherhood comes in many forms, and every version of it deserves to be seen. Some women are mothers to biological children. Some stepped into the rol

Hi Friends, I recently listened to an interview with the author of Small Things Like These, and it stayed with me long after it ended. She spoke about the real history behind the story, the so-called laundries in Ireland, where young women were sent and often forgotten. These places, known as Magdalene Laundries, were only shut down as recently as the mid-1980s. Hearing that stopped me for a moment. Not just because of how recent it is, but because of what it represents about