MARGARITAS, FIRE ALARMS, SHIPS, AND SHOWS!

A road trip! A road trip! Who doesn’t love a road trip! While mine down to Southern California thirteen days ago wasn’t exactly filled with Jack Kerouac moments, it was nevertheless an exhilarating break from the pressures of daily life about which I wrote in my previous newsletter. The Thursday before last, I went south,…

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A POTENT MAGIC

As I tackle this week’s newsletter, I find myself feeling tired and swamped. When I consider how many things are happening in my life right now, I am not surprised. I have passed the three hundred page mark in my novel, as well as creating over forty newsletters to connect with you all over the…

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A MOTHER’S PILGRIMAGE

In August of this year, my younger son is getting married. For this momentous event, the entire family will travel to Israel, a destination known by many as “The Holy Land.” This appellation is appropriate for every one of us, even though we come from different backgrounds and religions, because the union between my son…

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THE RISK IT TAKES TO BLOSSOM

At some point in our lives, all of us feel insecure—whether because we are rejected by someone we love, or because we make a hash of a good career opportunity, or because we choose poorly and discover ourselves in a situation in which we do not want to be, or simply because we allow ourselves…

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A LESSON IN LOSS FROM GREEN BEAN

As usual, I have a “dog story” to tell you. And as usual, it is far more than that, having become, for me, a “life story.” I am on a plane travelling to the Dalmatian Club of American National Specialty Show in Ohio, writing by hand on a yellow pad of paper, with a solitary…

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WATCHING MY FEET

Everything in life that is worth anything at all requires the belief that, if you persevere, you will eventually get wherever you are headed. The Taoist philosopher Lao Tzu once said: “The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.” While I am neither a Taoist, nor a “religious” woman (“spiritual” would be…

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EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN

My son is getting married and, even though he is 6’4? and thirty years old, I still see him as my little boy. Despite his size and his new-found love, he will nevertheless always be my child, and one with whom I have an intense and unique connection. This somewhat confusing situation is probably true…

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SINGING THE PET SITTER BLUES

To find excellent care for those we love when we have to leave them can be a big challenge that is hard on the psyche. Whether it is locating just the right pediatrician for your children, or deciding on the best hospice for your elderly parents, or choosing a nurse for your spouse when illness…

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BASKING IN THE ROSES

Early spring is here in Northern California. In my last newsletter two weeks ago, the daffodils were nodding their cheery yellow faces at the wind, but now they have gone past and are only little wrinkled heads on the top of long green stalks. However, my neighbor’s magnolia trees hold out boughs on which perch…

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BARKING BACK AT THE CHALLENGES OF LIFE

In September of 2014, Bespotted appeared in the bookstores. My close friends, and both new and old readers, congratulated me on a job well done. To my surprise, Amazon recommended the book as a “Hot New Release,” my publisher took it back for a second printing, dog lovers bought it, and I received a lot…

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