2026/Good Mother

2026

Hello and welcome to a new year!!! 2026. Kinda boring, right? Not much noteworthy going on in the world. Oh well. Maybe next year?

Yes, I'm joking.

2026 is anything but boring. Frightening? Yes. Surreal? Yes. Serving up nausea-inducing headlines daily? Yes. Ugh. I don't like it either. It can feel like doom and gloom 24/7 if you let it. And I do unfortunately let that doom and gloom seep into my nervous system far more often than is healthy and required.

So what's a citizen of the planet supposed to do with all this negative energy, hopelessness, and restlessness? I don't have a magic wand just yet, but what I do have are wonderful people around me who remind me during moments of despair -- This is all shit! What can we do? Why do bad folks get away with all this stuff? Where's the accountability? Where's the HUMANITY in all of this? Who can we trust? -- that while I can't control what bad actors do or the systems that enable them, what I can control is what I do.

The care, kindness, and goodness I spread within my community, family, and circle of influence might be small, but that doesn't mean it's not mighty.

What we think matters. What we do matters. What we intend matters. I firmly believe that small acts of kindness reverberate far beyond their tiny little beginnings. A smile, a held door, a sincere, "thank you" -- they all matter. We pay it forward, even if it's just in a shift in our mood or attitude about the day. Greeting another human being with a calm smile rather than an annoyed 'hurry the fuck up' translates into an energy-shift that might make a true difference at the end of the day.

I'm not saying that buying a stranger a coffee is going to change the world or fix the multitude of issues we face in 2026, but it's a start, isn't it? It'll definitely change your world, even if it's momentary. Give it a go -- let me know what happens.

Good Mother

It's been almost a year since I published "Good Girl", and I'm still digesting the banquet of emotions that followed her release: Pride. Relief. Pain. Easing of pain. Anger. Happiness. The

whole shebang.

For now, "Good Girl" needs to sit and percolate; she's finding her readers (for this, I remain so grateful), and her assumptions, explanations, and conclusions continue to filter through my intellect and nervous system. I will circle back to her when the time is right, perhaps with new understandings, perhaps not. Time will tell.

I'm ready to move forward with new topics, some related to "Good Girl", some not. For months now, the deep recesses of my brain have been screaming a new title at me: "Good Mother." Fine. I'm listening. What is it you want me to write or explore?

This:

Together we've explored the concept of "good girl" a whole big bunch, but, what about moms? What makes a "good mother"? As a mom myself, I often question my worth as a mother. What does my "mom" report card look like? Am I doing enough? Too much? Am I repeating unhealthy patterns? Am I asking my girls (and boy) to be "good"? Am I giving them the tools they need to love and trust themselves? Are they going to be ok? What do I look like in their eyes? How do they define "good mother"? Is there toxicity in the term, "good mother" like there can be in the term, "good girl", or is it a different ball of wax? Not all moms are good, I realize. In fact, I'm sure most of us are not "good" most of the time, no matter how hard we try. Good may be the goal, but the messy reality is way more important. Perhaps we scratch "good" from the title altogether and just examine who mom is - the good, the bad, and everything in between.

What Do You Think?

I plan to spend some time exploring and writing about this topic and I would love to know what you think. I've written a prompt to kickstart the exercise. I'd love to learn about your mother and perhaps include your words about your mother in an upcoming book. If your mom is no longer with us, please tell me what she was like. Sometimes it's only after losing someone dear to us that we can fully understand who they were at their core, and what gifts they gave us during their life and beyond.

Please share your thoughts in the comments section -- I can't wait to learn about your mom. (p.s. While you're there, tell me a little bit about yourself, too please.)

Prompt

Tell me about your mother.

Draw me a picture.

Write me a poem.

Define her in one word.

What does she look like?

What does she smell like?

What does she sound like?

What does she feel like?

Does she silently send signals?

Does she walk a certain way?

Dos she know she’s good?

Does she think she’s bad? Not good enough?

What feeds her soul?

What drives her to the edge of madness?

Does she rebound or fall?

Does she mind falling?

Does she look fear and truth in the eye?

Does she deflect and overcompensate?

Does she love with abandon?

Is her pain too much to bear?

Does she recognize her own essence?

Does she run from it or toward it?

Does she reject it or absorb it?

Did she learn to create it herself or was she told who she was?

Will she pass it on?

Tell me about her.