Years ago, before I had a summer (future retirement) place in Maine and before I had shoulder issues (one frozen, the other broken), I used to swim pretty regularly in the the local lake, pictured above. My friend(s) and I would meet at the school’s beach (not pictured– this is the jetty, used as a…
Author: caritagardiner
307. Why They’re Still Kids
I didn’t ask my kiddos’ permission to post the two cutie-patootie photos of them above. (I hope they won’t get angry about it. How could they mind having everyone see them looking this lovely? Amiright?!) Since they’re now 22 and 25, they don’t look like this any longer to anyone but their dad and me;…
306. Why Someone’s Always Watching
Over my life, I’ve heard lots of people give the advice to live as if no one is watching. Usually, people advise others to dance that way, but the suggestion has come to mean more generally that we should eschew our inhibitions, let ourselves go, enjoy the moment unselfconsciously, etc. The assumption is that when…
305. Why Not Glide
I know that I mine a few aspects of my life for numerous posts, but, well, I guess that’s just how my life works. If you would prefer a post that didn’t come out of my love of romance novels, teaching English, Peloton workouts, knitting, eating candy, or ice hockey team, I guess you could…
304. Why Play the JV
A year ago around this time, I published a post I had written the year before to remind myself (and anyone out there reading this) of some of the aspects of diving that I love. I’m writing this essay a year in advance for a similar reason. Every year, the Salisbury Stingers (my adult, women’s…
303. Why Remakes
Back in the day, I taught a Senior English elective on film adaptations (including, of course, The Princess Bride). In that class, we would read books that had been made into movies and consider all the decisions that go into telling a story through moving images and sounds rather than black squiggles on paper. Early…
302. Why Be Vulnerable 2.0
This is my second post about the advantages of being vulnerable, but I’m not making the same point here as in the other one. Plus, since I published the first essay more than two years ago, I’m guessing that most of you either didn’t read it or don’t remember it. If you want to, you…
301. Why Empathy over Anger
If you’ve spoken with me for more than five minutes and/or read more than one of the other posts on this website, you know how I feel about romance novels. I know there are some lousy ones out there, but so many of them are wonderful. Just for the Summer is one such book. I particularly…
300. Why Flags are Complicated
Some of you might recognize the clip art I placed above these words, but I’m guessing not everyone reading this has the same reaction to seeing the American flag. In some locations, this symbol stands for one set of values where in other situations, people use it to support the exactly opposite ideals. In my…
299. Why (True) Generosity is Tricky for Me
The photo above doesn’t have anything to do with my topic for today. It’s a photo I took at my school; I think it’s pretty. I’ve been thinking about what it means to be truly generous. I love giving gifts, especially ones that people don’t expect and that don’t align with any recognized gift-giving event….