I embraced the whole forgiveness thing back in the 1990s, when I was a freelance writer for women’s magazines and watched a lot of Oprah. The theory goes that forgiveness enables us to work through our anger to a point of near-compassion for the person we are forgiving, which is the Read More
Thatwhich
Court-ordered child abuse
February 11, 2012
An elderly man, confined to his home, wants to see his grandchildren. He has eleven of them, the offspring of six children whom he and his devoted wife adopted during their 40-plus years of marriage. The couple also took in foster children over the years, and started a nonprofit organization whose mission is to help young people meet their full potential. The perfect grandparents, right? Read More
The A-word
February 4, 2012
Sam Henry, who has approved this message. (Photograph by Sam Ekren)
In 1994, coincidentally the year my son was born, Asperger syndrome was added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual. A month after Sam started third grade, I had what had become the typical, annual conversation with his teacher. Sam was falling behind. He seemed unaware of what was expected of him. Permission slips and homework never made it home. The teacher returned my call during her lunch break. I could tell she was guarded, reluctant to say what she was thinking. “I don’t want to scare you with the A-word,” she said.
“What A-word?’’ I knew my son wasn’t an asshole. Read More
“What A-word?’’ I knew my son wasn’t an asshole. Read More