by Alycia W. Morales @AlyciaMorales This week I have found it difficult to shut off all of the voices on social media and in the news. I’ve seriously considered taking a break from social media until all of the chaos settles, because my spirit is so unsettled. The controversy is overwhelming.…

by Deena Adams @Deenamadams If you’re breathing, you’ve been criticized at some point in your life. Aristotle said, “There is only one way to avoid criticism: Do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing.” I believe that’s true. We all have varied opinions on a multitude of subjects, especially politics and…

by Katy Kauffman @KatyKauffman28 I tried so hard to make those baby trees grow. Two years ago, I transplanted three small trees from my front yard to the back, and for weeks I “mommy-ed” them. I watered them, staked their six-inch-tall trunks to the ground, and made sure no one…

By Cherrilynn Bisbano @bisbanowrites I am a fish, at least that is what my dad said. My parents worked at a private lake. At the age of four, my father threw me in the water over my head to teach me to swim. (I do not recommend his methods). I…

By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills Recently a reader asked about my hardest task as a writer. I had to think before answering. I’m working line edits before turning in my next story, so I’m immersed in every word, goal, voice, gesture, motive, plot line, romance, suspense, symbol, character(s), emotion, dialogue, narrative,…

by Sandy Kirby Quandt @SandyKQuandt Borrowing a phrase from that spinach-eating sailor, Popeye, I thought about how sometimes life shivers our timbers. Especially when our world shifts, as it has recently, leaving us to balance the teeter-totter of life without hitting the ground with a solid thud.  Purely on a…