Books

Never let them see you cry. That used to be your motto – tears can be so inappropriate, right?

Imagine that you went to work one day and changed the world.

Traffic was stalled for miles, and so was your patience. There was nothing you could do except pound the steering wheel and watch your blood pressure rise

One minute. Maybe less. You can’t even say you turned your back. You only glanced at something there, admired something here, and in that breath of time when your eyes were elsewhere, your child disappeared.

Imagine that an anonymous benefactor just bestowed upon you an unexpected gift: a new home with everything you could ever want in it.

You know the feeling: you’d been in that room before. You remembered it, but it was different then.

You do it without even thinking about it. You hum around the house, sing to your babies, to your God, or to the radio. You catch yourself doing it while you’re relaxing with a hobby.

One week’s worth of vacation. All year long, you accumulate hours at work, just so you can take a leisurely week off to do what you want. Sure, you have a to-do list for your vacation, but here’s what’s on ...

Your daughter calls her “BFF:” Best Friends Forever. It’s a girl-bond that means sharing everything, including secrets, crushes and favorite clothes, best signified by incessant phone calls, texts, IMs, and sleepovers. Dads will never understand. Mothers know exactly.

When you were 15, your mother was hopelessly out of touch. Secretly, perhaps, you admired her

Remember last year’s political uproar? No, I’m not talking about election stumping or finger-pointing. Not mavericks or six-packs or porcine lipstick (although, who can forget those?).

Every day that you are alive, you are in danger. Leave the house and a tree could fall on you as you walk to the street. Or, an out-of-control car could run you over.

The pain started in your shoulder. No big deal. You convinced yourself it was nothing. Really.

Your friend swears that she absolutely must drink eight glasses of water each day. She says it’s for her health, and she swears by it. But you’re a little confused

The first few notes of the song begin, and his eyes meet hers from across the room. Shyly, they smile. It’s their wedding day, and this is, “Their song.”