Top Stories
Stories in Families that you'll love, handpicked by our team.
The recurring death. Top Story - April 2021.
The death of any loved one is difficult and healing can be hindered by simply taking care of business. I vaguely experienced this with my mother and my grandmother but it's almost unbearable now that my husband has died. We spent 45 years together which is 5 years shy of being half a century. He has only been gone about 3 weeks but it feels like an eternity. Each time I believe I am having a good day something happens that causes me to feel as if he has just died all over again. It feels like smooth sailing and then waves crashing down over and over again taking my breath away before they subside.
By Cheryl E Preston5 years ago in Families
Stories My Grandfather Told Me. Top Story - March 2021.
My grandfather passed away in September of 2020. His friends called him “Jimmy” while others liked “James.” But I always called him Papa. Before his passing, my sister’s and I rotated in shifts during the height of the pandemic to make sure he was not escaping his home to hangout with his friends. He often enjoyed walking around his neighborhood to socialize. My grandfather encompassed the phrase “social butterfly.” But he had been diagnosed with dementia and needed someone to remind him that he could not leave his house, that he needed to take his medication, and that he needed to exercise. But while I was making sure he took his daily dose of medication, he liked to tell me stories of his life. And just like any nugget of wisdom you could receive from your therapist, in books, in movies, from friends and more, the stories my grandfather told me have improved my life tenfold.
By Bella Leon6 years ago in Families
How One Busy Mom Makes Time for Family Dinner. Top Story - March 2021. Created with: Plant Camp.
As a mom of four girls that range in age from seven years old to four weeks old I can certainly tell you how fast the time goes. I often wonder where the time has gone and how I could possibly be the mother of a seven year old already! I’m constantly questioning the decisions I am making as a parent - did I spend enough time with each of them today, did I use the right words to make them feel good, did I give their bodies the right amount of nutrients for energy and growth and the list goes on and on. Parenthood is a crazy ride and until about one year ago I was letting it fly by without realizing it.
By Margaret McAfee6 years ago in Families
My Father's House. Top Story - March 2021.
I am standing in the house my father built. The rooms are cold, as they always were. The myth of California is that it’s always warm. Instead, the damp gets inside of you until your skin crawls. The heat was never turned on in my father’s house.
By Louis Chalif6 years ago in Families
Dear Fathers. Top Story - February 2021.
Dear fathers in your many forms, I am blessed to have one of you close, adopt others, marvel and smile at many, desire to see freedom and justice for others. I learn from you, the depths of your roots and the worlds in your eyes. I’ve grown up amidst tangible yous and messages about you, depictions that usually seemed to miss the mark--overlooked huge parts of your heart. As a kid I often felt pained, sad watching movies with black men, like my dad or about black stories because they seemed incessantly heavy. I was confused, because my black family and community had their strife, but there was so much fun and vibrant life.
By Carly F. J.6 years ago in Families
The Bucket List. Top Story - February 2021.
Wool socks… a couple of plaid flannel shirts… jeans… a single burner camp stove… night goggles… hiking boots… legal documents, lots of legal documents. Newspaper articles telling of the undercover sting operation that laundered money for people who brought American dollars back in exchange for prime Canadian hydroponic weed… an old passport… a driver’s license in someone else’s name that I hope he didn’t kill anyone for.
By Coranne Creswell6 years ago in Families
