With Mother's Day approaching I thought I'd share one of, if not the, best gift I have ever received. My mom sent me the “Mom, Share Your Life with Me” journal as a gift many years ago. At the time I thought it was a cool gift but remember thinking how could I possibly add one more thing to my already full schedule writing everyday in this little book? But as the years passed I'd pull it out every now and then and write in it. I was trying to write on the actual date indicated in the calendar-like Read more [...]

Still, when I need to use Donna's last name I hesitate because I know her as "Donna Honeysuckle" since we met at Honeysuckle Restaurant in Franklin, Tennessee and that's the way I put her number in my phone on that same night, with plans to get together again in the near future. Which we did. Many times. Really she's just "Donna" to me. But much more than that, she is an incredible artist, which I only came to know much later in our friendship. Ever since working at Disney World with guests from Read more [...]

If you haven't seen the Academy Award winning National Geographic film, Free Solo yet, I'd strongly suggest you set aside some time and do so! Nat Geo describes this masterpiece as "Both an edge-of-your seat thriller and an inspiring portrait of an athlete who exceeded our current understanding of human physical and mental potential". But what really stands out for me is that this documentary is multi-dimensional. It's not just an "intimate and unflinching portrait of the free soloist climber Read more [...]

I've known and admired Amy Straley since she was a very young, beautifully poised, ballet dancer. So to say I was thrilled to reconnect with her years later on Instagram and find that she is quite the accomplished artist, would be an understatement. I anxiously anticipate her next unique piece of art and her clever description, often in the form of a short story. It's obvious Amy is gifted in the arts with some very natural talent but it's a strong sense of passion that really comes through for Read more [...]

With the recent passing of guitarist Gary Rossington, the last surviving original member of the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, my memory was sparked into thinking about one of a handful of 5 Heart concert experiences in my life. I've seen almost everyone I've wanted to see, 300+ concerts, so to say Lynyrd Skynyrd is in the top 3, should give you an idea of how completely blown away I was by this band. I was raised by a pretty strict father and being the first born girl in a family of 11, it would be an Read more [...]