WriteRunRead Blog

 My father used to joke around a lot and if I seemed offended, he would say, “Lighten up, Julie Ann” or “Julieta,” as he sometimes called me. He would say it when I was stressed about school work or some other big event, like a job interview or law school exam. I used to get so upset when he said this, “Lighten up” phrase. I hardly understood what he meant. Really. I thought so much about it. Should I not worry so much about this or that? Should I laugh it off like other people were able to around me? I was not sure.  As I’ve gotten older and thought about his expression to me, I know in my heart that he was trying to help: don’t take things so seriously, relax already, stop worrying so much. But how on earth was I to do that? It didn’t and doesn’t seem possible. I am certain that each person is “wired” a particular way and now I know that I was wired (and still am) to take things seriously. People, other than my dad, have said to me, “You’re too sensitive,” which I see as a v...

Before the Internet, or at least the Internet as we know it, I used to call my mom to ask her questions as I started to learn to cook. To prepare meals on my own, as a newly married woman, as someone exploring the kitchen, deeper into it than boiling water and making pasta. I needed to know what cut of meat to buy to make a respectable roast beef. Or, how long to cook it. Do I season or brown it before roasting? Recipes were not at the ready. They were not a click away. But my mother was a phone call away. And always happy to hear from one of her young adult daughters, who lived on her own. She always had the answer. For how long should I parboil the potatoes? “Stick a fork in them and see how soft they are. Can you mash them?” Most of her suggestions or advice were obvious. Then I began to wonder if I needed her guidance, or perhaps I just wanted to know that I still needed her, and that she would always be there with the answer. So now I have two of my own “young adults” in college. ...