pop culture
Some pop-culture families incite envy with their picture-perfection, while others make you acutely grateful for the one you're stuck with.
Unscalable Walls
Have you ever tried to scale a smooth, lubricated wall? The wall is immense and almost vertical, too high to grapple. You have no purchase. You try, but fail. At some point, you accept it’s there and cannot be taken down once it’s been built. There are tiny steps you can take to chip away at the wall, but no matter how much you try, you gain little ground. It might have been better never to have tried to scale it, but once you did, you couldn't undo the experience, even if you accepted that there was little you could do to reach its summit. This is how lies feel.
By Alexandra Grantabout a month ago in Families
Garbage In, Garbage Out
Everything We Take In, Molds Us I often hear people, especially young kids, say, “That doesn’t affect me.” The truth is, everything affects us. The only difference is in how. Some things affect us positively, and some negatively. Either way, what we listen to, look at, or experience always changes us. This is important because garbage in means garbage out. If you listen to bad things and see them constantly, the result is that bad things come out.
By Alexandra Grant2 months ago in Families
My First Metal Gig For 25 Years! But What The Helloween Should I Wear?
Black leather biker jacket covered in scuffs. Studded wrist band that looks suspiciously like a deadly weapon. A huge wad of thick greasy hair reaching all the way down to some deliberately torn jeans. All very acceptable. Don’t you think?
By Simon Aylward2 months ago in Families
My Parents Have One Son to Be Proud Of, and It's Not Me
At this point, I have written many times about how I have screwed up my life over and over, and how I am still now at a point of desperation and trying to climb up hill battles to fix myself and my life. Well, I have an older brother who, of course, has made his fair share of mistakes as well. However, unlike me, he generally does everything he is meant to do and then goes beyond that a little further.
By Timothy A Rowland2 months ago in Families
Andreas Szakacs on the Power of Community Support and Social Impact
In a world where many families continue to face challenges related to food security, healthcare access, and education, Andreas Szakacs believes that meaningful change begins at the community level. Through his commitment to philanthropy and social responsibility, Andreas Szakacs has become an advocate for initiatives that support children and families in underserved communities.
By Andreas szakacs4 months ago in Families
Do As I Say
There are few things in life that are more infuriating than a parental proverb. I sometimes wonder who first spewed out the very first mother’s or father’s rulebook of laws. I believe they were deliberately created to avoid explanation. Parents, not wanting to explain themselves, quickly adopted short, often snide remarks that ended the conversation, leaving us kids with big question marks hovering over our heads and bitterness in our hearts. My dad was a master at this skill. He was Pulitzer Prize-worthy.
By Alexandra Grant4 months ago in Families
Tell Me Who Your Friends Are
My dad had many little quips he would use not only to make a point but also to irritate us. When I was growing up, hearing them made me angry. He would just pop them off without explaining them. That was maddening. They sounded like a snub. It wasn’t until I was an adult and later had our son that I caught myself using a couple of them, and I finally understood their meaning. I said I would never be like my dad, and yet here I was using those presumed words of wisdom.
By Alexandra Grant4 months ago in Families
Recipe for A Human
The world is a complete and utter dumpster fire. Hate surrounds us at every level. Social media, the 24-hour news cycle, religion (yes, I said it), and politics all perpetuate it. It doesn’t end unless we choose to end it. My husband and I chose to help make that happen.
By Alexandra Grant4 months ago in Families
What You Teach Without Knowing
Opening the cupboards I see it. It does’t hit me right away. I open the kitchen drawer for a spoon and I noticed it, but just barely. Then last night, as I folded and put away clothes, it confronted me again, but this time I paused. In that moment, I realized my son does things the way I do. I saw his habits mirror mine in many ways; ways I did not intentionally teach him. My son had been watching and paying attention to everything I did.
By Alexandra Grant5 months ago in Families
