My Story

"I got you" Suicide Prevention Month We all fall sometimes. For many reasons, or sometimes for no understood reason at all. I lived a season like this. It snuck upon me suddenly when I lost two friends to suicide one month apart; my life was spiraling out of control. I had no…

You. Can. Sit. Here. The last four words ever spoken to the boy who was killed in the Columbine library seconds before the gun was turned on me. These words were nearly the last four words I would ever speak. I didn’t know what I was doing; just trying to be nice,…

I suppose I didn’t realize the title of my book, Over My Shoulder, would continue to hold so many new meanings. The view behind me is ever-changing. I have been warned by fellow moms about this new view, but I am struggling to see it clearly as I experience unexpected…

I never wanted to need to meet these doctors. But, their investments in my life story have helped to build trusting relationships that prove I’m not just another broken body to fix. Their collaboration and dedication to whole-person-care are evidence of their desires for success to go beyond what appears…

“I saw a spirit of heroism rise up from what appeared to be regular teenagers in the Columbine library, students who helped each other escape with little to no thought about their own personal safety.” -Over My Shoulder, Chapter 5 People were escaping for freedom, and I was lying critically injured…

20 years. Crosses with pictures of those lost. Tears. I’ve lived with this ‘new normal’ longer than I lived with the old one. Sometimes the day of April 20, 1999 feels like a lifetime ago. Actually, it is longer than the lifetimes of 12 of the 13 people whose lives…

I’m a gift-lover. I certainly never mind receiving one, but I find so much joy in carefully wrapping a thoughtfully chosen present for someone else. The best gifts to me are the ones given unexpectedly, and without any reason other than thoughtfulness. There is one gift, though, that has truly…

Five years ago, I was on the hunt for a white farmhouse table to use as our everyday table in the kitchen. I found some beautiful pieces, but wasn’t able to spend the $600-700. Instead, my ever handy husband Patrick found a table for $10. What? He told me the…