A couple of years ago I was at a conference when a friend, a member of the planning committee, mentioned that one of the panelists on main stage event had missed their plane. She scrambled to find a replacement to speak on the news media and was lucky enough to secure someone last minute. The others on the panel were quite famous. One, an elder statesman and frequent political commentator, the other a news anchor from a major network, and the moderator was a former CEO of a radio news outlet. The chairs on the enormous stage stood about seven feel apart, leaving Tara McGowan, the understudy, replacement, stand-in, center stage on an island all her own in an emerald green dress. I have no idea how old she is, but she looked to be about thirty.

The first question went out to the group and the jolly news anchor took the mic and launched in. He talked for quite a long time—maybe ten minutes—with nods and support from the elder statesman and the moderator. He regaled us with stories about his career and lectured us on the vital importance television. Tara McGowan, poised and still, watched as he talked and talked. Honestly, I wasn’t taking much in—he was full of bluster and self-congratulation, chuckling at his own jokes. My mind was wandering when a flash of green caught my attention. Tara McGowan had moved suddenly …Read on.

On January 1, 2023, this post appeared. That morning, one year ago, as I contemplated the forthcoming year, I announced what I wanted. And it surprised me. I’d asked this question of myself quite a few times since discovering the yellowed cardboard with my mother’s particular penmanship after her death. Nothing I’d announced had hit just right. Mostly, I answered with things I thought I should want, or things that my inner Facebook-Ad-Life-Coach thought I should want: “To work with famous clients who are doing good in the world, like Michelle Obama, Greta Thunberg, Doctor’s Without Borders, Kamala Harris, and Malala Yousafzai.” It sounded great, to reach high as I entered the Empty Nest years. But it didn’t feel great. It felt superficial. I’m already working with people and organizations who expertly, thoughtfully, passionately, doggedly, make positive change for us all. I am constantly amazed, challenged, awakened, and thrilled by their purpose, their words, their vital work in the world. I am honored to work with them. I am grateful. It is more than enough. So, on the first day of 2023 the surprising thing I found myself announcing, out-loud, to the quiet morning kitchen was::…Read on.

What would happen if we announced what we wanted? Out loud. Would the sky fall down? Would we stun people? Would we stun ourselves? Would relationships change? Would our lives move in a different direction? Why are we so reluctant to simply say what we want? Do we even know what we want? Announcing is not demanding or even asking, it’s just putting our wants into words. A statement. And yet…My mother was the kind of person who would stop on the highway to pick up garbage, who eschewed milk in plastic bottles, and re-used wrapping paper year after year. She also saved all of those pieces of cardboard the dry-cleaners used in men’s shirts in the 70s. Months after she died, I found myself in a room stacked with 61 boxes sent from her house in Cleveland. Boxes filled with photos, postcards, birth certificates, old passports. And one piece of dry-cleaner cardboard with her distinctive handwriting and the words…Read on.