Suicide is Not Painless

by Mary Jo Hazard Last August 11th, Robin Williams committed suicide. He left three adult children to cope with his death—heartbroken, without a choice. On September 26, 1972, my father shot himself. It was my sister’s birthday. He sat on my old twin bed, in the bedroom my sister and I had shared as children,

Every Child Deserves Love

Several years ago, I worked as a therapist in a child abuse treatment center. I counseled victims of physical abuse, sexual abuse and traumatic loss. Melanie (not her real name) was one of these children. One afternoon in March, I was at my desk in the treatment center. Melanie’s mother was circling the block in

Yes, You Need a Platform

Congratulations, you’ve written a book! You’re done, right? You’ve typed and edited and revised and uploaded to your printer, and now the book is ready for people to beat a path to your door, right? Oops. If you’re like me, you soon discover that you are missing something critical:

WHO?

Pollyanna Prewitt followed her father up the cracked sidewalk to the dilapidated house on the edge of the graveyard. She stopped to tie her shoe. “Come on, Polly, “Lester said. He set the shovel down, fished the house key out of his back pocket and waited for her. “It’s almost dark and the fog’s moving

10 of my Favorite Things to Do When I was six!

1. Swimming in my “day of the week” underwear 2. Licking the spoon when my mom baked cookies 3. Jumping in rain puddles 4. Digging in the dirt to make mud pies for giants 5. Catching fireflies and putting them in jars to light up my room 6. Sitting my mom’s lap while she read

The Nature Principle in Palos Verdes

A year ago, I leaned on the wall behind Point Vicente Interpretive Center, took out my binoculars, and scanned the ocean for grey whales.  I watched the sun shimmer off the water and playful dolphins skim the waves not far from shore. Above me, a flock of pelicans flew in a straight line. And then