I hope you will consider how the gifts you choose for grandchildren, nieces, and nephews build relationships and generate storytelling, sharing, and yes, even learning. Updated for 2017 Originally posted October 22nd, 2015 Disclosure: Gabrielle Polt Balkan, author of The 50 States is my step-daughter. Other than parental pride per the atlas, and the Amazon […]
Giving Beyond The Boxed Gift
This time of year makes me think of gifts and what women are giving to the next generation. This year, 2017, has been an extremely tumultuous time. To use a kitchen and baking metaphor our cultural batter is being is being whipped up, over-beaten, into a flat mess that may have a difficult time […]
Christmas Music
We all have our favorite music. But when it comes to Holiday music, I have found that people have very strong preferences. I have seen perfectly innocuous Gene Autry Christmas compilations drive 20-somethings up the wall after a mere two play-throughs. Alvin […]
December Already
How can it be December already? It was carved pumpkins, then pumpkin pie, and now we are readying for Christmas trees, dreidels, and multi-color candles. December brings one of my favorite memories with it. When my daughter was little, no more than four, and attending nursery school, songs of the season were a big deal […]
One Story of the ME TOO Stories
This started out as my ME TOO story and it still is, part of it is anyway… the meta-story of a movement. The #metoo phenomena is not just about sexual assault or harassment. It is about speaking truth to power. Speaking truth, telling our stories, strengthens us. The voice in our heads becomes the voice […]
A Strawberry Solstice Moon
Full Moon on a Summer Solstice Occasionally celestial events co-occur. It seems that such an overlap is happening today. The Summer Solstice and the June Full Moon both happen today. That much is true. Everything else you might read about it could be bunk. Misinformation is everywhere. A cautionary tale to include your source when […]