The swimming pool was the best place to be for a young girl growing up in the hot Texas summers. I’d hand over my crumpled dollar at the counter and spend the whole day there. After a quick shower, I’d grab my face mask, towel, and snack bar money, then…
Columns
Every June, my social media feeds fill with rainbows. My LGBTQ+ friends celebrate Pride Month, while others share deeply personal stories about identity, belonging, and acceptance. Some are hopeful, some heartbreaking, and most carry a bit of both. Every year, I read those stories and find myself thinking about my…
For most of my childhood and teenage years, I thought everyone planned their lives around their periods the way I did. I wore dark clothes to school, kept my backpack stocked like a field hospital, and constantly did the quiet math of how long I could sit through a class…
Since my youngest son, Caeleb, arrived home from a successful second year of college, he has been interning at the church where I serve as pastor. His main job is to shred countless old documents, so I’ve nicknamed him “Shred Boy.” So far, he enjoys working and does a good…
At work, I’m the second-oldest on my team. With our ages ranging from mid-20s to early 50s, we each bring different life experiences. I’m always interested in hearing the Gen Z and millennial women share their stories. As a Gen X person, I sometimes do things that remind me of…
In recent years, there has been a massive shift in the understanding that female hemophilia carriers can indeed have the condition themselves. Fellow Hemophilia News Today columnist Jennifer Lynne and I both write regularly about the struggles women with hemophilia face, though more are now being properly diagnosed…
If you’re raising a child with hemophilia, I understand the fear. It starts early — before sports, sleepovers, and field trips, and often before they’re old enough to understand their diagnosis. You learn about joint bleeds, head injuries, emergency room visits, and all the things that can go wrong.
It happened three times in 48 hours. I didn’t go looking for them — the conversations found me. Three different people from our bleeding disorders community, none knowing about the others, told me a similar version of the same story. They had tried to talk to their mothers about bleeding…
My house is on a cul-de-sac, and right behind my street is undeveloped desert leading up to New Mexico’s Organ Mountains. I love walking on the trails in the open area whenever I feel stressed or anxious. Even when my struggles feel overwhelming, making my way through the otherworldliness of…
I struggle with something that affects me on every level — spiritually, emotionally, and physically. It’s called perfectionism. My perfectionism started when I was a kid. I used to rearrange my room all the time, making sure everything was in its place. A tidy space made me happy. As a…
