Writings by Diane

A couple of weeks ago, I participated in Bowling for Kids' Sake , a charity event benefiting Big Brothers and Big Sisters. It was a blast bowling with my team in a fun competitive setting.  As I played, I was struck how certain aspects of bowling can be an analogy of life. For instance, in the game, you are constantly adjusting to the changes of the lanes. Other people throw their bowling balls differently, making the oil on the lanes move around.  Consequently, even when you throw your ball, you are also contributing to the changing lane conditions. Even when you become annoyed that your ball isn’t performing exactly the way it was a frame ago, you don’t stop playing. You move your spot, you bowl with your plastic ball instead of your reactive resin -- in other words, you adjust. Another characteristic in bowling is each frame can be a game changer.   You find the perfect spot to throw your ball and knock down all the pins. Then just as suddenly, you can throw a gut...

Sometimes a memory hits me with full force that I experience the initial feelings of that time. Then when these raw emotions subside, a clearer perspective takes over. For instance, I remembered a visit to my husband’s great aunt in the hospital over a decade ago. Dorothy was the matriarch of his family--it didn’t matter she was not a mom herself. She was a woman with good old common sense, who didn’t mince words and you always knew where you stood with her.    My mother-in- law and husband were with me on this visit. At this time, I happened to be 6 months pregnant with our son. This period of the pregnancy was spectacular—I was well over the morning sickness and my tummy was protruding out with the unmistakable bulge.   Whenever I entered a room, I was the complete center of attention. Seats were always offered to me, cooing admirers would materialize out of nowhere, gushing out congratulations.  To be perfectly honest, I was really starting to get used ...