It started with a text from my dad:“Be ready at 11. Dress warm. It’s a date.” At first, I thought he was joking. I even double-checked with my mom. She…
MY LITTLE COUSIN SHOWED UP TO EASTER WEARING A SCUBA DIVER SUIT — I WASN’T EXPECTING MY FAMILY’S REACTION
Easter brunch was already in full swing—ham in the oven, pastel eggs everywhere, and my grandma yelling at people to “get out of her kitchen if you’re not stirring something.”…
TWO YEARS WITHOUT OUR DOG — AND GRIEF TAUGHT US SOMETHING WE NEVER EXPECTED
It’s been two years since we lost him. Two whole years without his little paws tapping on the tile, without his head poking through the curtains when we got home….
I NEVER THOUGHT I’D GO ANYWHERE WITHOUT MY DOG— AND I DIDN’T EVEN WANT HIM AT FIRST
When my sister brought home the golden retriever puppy, I was so annoyed. I had just moved back in for a bit—life stuff, job stuff, the usual—and the last thing…
I LEFT EVERYTHING BEHIND—JUST ME, MY PARTNER, AND EIGHT KIDS ON A DUSTY FARM
People thought we were out of our minds. Eight kids. Two adults. One rusty trailer full of mismatched boots, worn-out baby toys, and a sourdough starter I barely knew how…
MY SON’S IN A HOSPITAL BED—AND HE’S STILL WORRIED ABOUT MISSING CARTOONS, NOT HIS DISEASE
I don’t know how he does it. One minute, I’m barely holding it together, watching numbers beep and tubes shift and nurses murmur things I don’t understand. And the next,…
MY DAUGHTER BROUGHT BACK THE LOVE MY PARENTS HAD FORGOTTEN HOW TO SHOW
I honestly thought my parents were done. Not divorced or anything—they were still together—but in that quiet, roommate kind of way. Conversations between them had turned into logistics. Meals, meds,…
I DIDN’T KNOW THIS WOULD BE THE LAST PICTURE I’D EVER TAKE WITH HER
I remember this day like it was a lazy Saturday, ’cause it was. June 3rd, 2011. I had no idea I’d be flipping back to this photo so many times…
HIS MOM TURNED HIM AGAINST ME—AND I NEVER SAW IT COMING
When I met Dariel, it felt like the universe was finally being kind to me. He was gentle, goofy, protective in all the right ways. We’d stay up watching dumb…
MY MOM ONCE SAID SHE NEVER WANTED KIDS — AND NOW SHE’S HOLDING HER GRANDSON LIKE HE’S HER WHOLE WORLD
She used to say it all the time, like it was a badge of honor. “Kids? Not for me. Too loud, too messy, too much.” Growing up, I heard that…