How many of you have heard the term... It's time to fish or cut bait? The modern context in which it has been widely used centered around a challenging deadline or an ambivalent situation that required an imminent decision. And in every context, it was used as a call to action. In other words... Do … Continue reading When Its Time to Cut Bait
Fighting Personal Demons
The cycle will remain unbroken until you break it... I have written much about the trauma behavior of abused children. But what about the abuser? Who bothers to think of the "why" behind their actions? Jan grew up as the middle girl between two other sisters for the first 13 years of her life. When … Continue reading Fighting Personal Demons
Be the Change
I notice how many people post, via social media, about the injustice in the world...the inequality...the unfair treatment of others. I can feel your outrage as the innocent and ordinary are often trampled by the powerful and self important. Rights are snatched away based on age, gender, race... The World can be a cold and … Continue reading Be the Change
A Slice of Humble Pie
As a young, ambitious social worker, I worked hard to grow professionally while achieving goals. After a year of focusing, learning and experience, my statistics were good, client satisfaction was high and my small county rated highly in state ranks in child welfare. To be sure, I was fortunate to be part of a great … Continue reading A Slice of Humble Pie
Taking on the Giant
If you grew up going to Sunday School, you know the story of David and Goliath. If you didn't; the story summary is thus. In a battle between warring factions, one side had recruited a Giant. Each morning this massive warrior would lumber to the front lines, taunting the other side with jeers and accusations … Continue reading Taking on the Giant
Fitting In
Photo by Betsy Biddle Lange I love looking at rock patterns in the natural. Without pre-purposed design, a group of stones, all different colors, shapes and sizes fit together as a composition of balance that would not be possible if all of the rocks were identical. They would not fit. During my middle to high … Continue reading Fitting In
Trial by Fire
When I was a very young girl, I had my first experience with Fire. And my family has never let me live it down. While visiting family in New Orleans, my brothers and I had spent the night with my step-grandmother and my two aunts. Interestingly, my two aunts were the same age as my … Continue reading Trial by Fire
Give Thanks
Many people in America revere the holiday known as Thanksgiving. It's been fed to us (literally) since our birth. If you grew up in the US, it is unlikely that you escaped a role in the inevitable Thanksgiving play performed on the Elementary School stage by a cast of pilgrims, turkeys, and Native Americans. After … Continue reading Give Thanks
Waiting for the Rain to end
For the past two weeks, the heavens have fractured, spilling forth a deluge of rain. Like a faulty spigot, some days the water gushed torrentially and other days the water slowed to a steady dripping. The temperature, as if confused like the rest of us, rose and dropped randomly according to its whim. But the … Continue reading Waiting for the Rain to end
Holding Up
Photo by Betsy Biddle Lange While vacationing in the Smokey Mountains one Autumn, I happened across a rock formation similar to the one pictured. Both magnificent and terrifying in sheer size, the onyx colored monolith dominated the median of a boulevard. Impervious to the stream of tiny cars flitting like moths around a porch light, … Continue reading Holding Up