Bring On Lemons

  Sitting at my kitchen table listening to the latest Christian music on Apple Music and this song came through my earbuds. I see my counselor every few weeks and start my day with some anti-anxiety meds. I worry about everything. I know it's sinful. I know God is in control. However I blame myself for everything from global warming, the declining sea turtle population, my daughter's anger issues, my thinning hair, and everything in between. I want to take a moment to give this song 5 stars before I go onto my goofy ramblings. Listen to it! Like it! Add it to your play list!  Yes -  you heard that right. When I say "I'm sorry" ten thousand times a day, they aren't just words. I truly feel responsible for every bad thing that happens from here to the far reaches of the galaxy. I smoked for a bit in highschool which is why I'm short (mom said), I have sensitive teeth and can only drink through a straw which is why the sea turtles and manatee are struggling...

Let's talk about contrast for a moment. My initial thought was I should write an article about light and darkness and in reality I'm still writing the same article - just a bit of a better spin on it. Contrast is of course the state of one thing being different from another - which makes it the perfect word to use when speaking on the subject of light and darkness. As an artist though - I'd like to talk about contrast which is the coming together of two opposite elements. Look at this picture for example - the restaurant looks dark only because the light is shining in the window and the photograph was taken with me facing the light and the camera facing the dark. The opposing elements cause the contrast. I ask myself, would the warmth of Wisconsin summer seem less warm without the cold of a Wisconsin winter? Would our joyful life experiences seem less joyful if not for the pain of our anxiety filled struggles?  I initially wanted to write an uplifting article about how the ...

Review by Crystal J. Casavant-Otto Let me begin by saying thank you to Nicole at WOW! Women on Writing for the opportunity of participating in this book blog tour. I'm not OKAY is a story that needed telling and Renee Antonia did a lovely job of pulling me in as a reader. It's safe to say those who have experienced anxiety (in youth or otherwise) will find the character of Alejandra to be well written and easy to relate with. Similarly, Alejandra's feelings are laid out so well that even someone who has no personal experience with anxiety or mental health issues will feel empathy as the story unfolds. The author herself admitted in her interview with WOW! that she wishes she had hired someone to help edit I'm not OKAY and with that said, I found that the typos and such didn't take away from the story. I commend Renee Antonia for her bravery in telling this story as well as for self-publishing as a 20 year old. I appreciate the opportunity to read this book a...

Looking for some advice for a mama in a tough situation. What do you do when you're in the midst of a separation/divorce? How do you move past the feelings of despair, sadness, loneliness, worthlessness, and move forward to the happy life ahead of you? Are those steps different if your spouse or significant other was cheating? What if they were addicted to drugs? Alcohol? Porn? I shared my story in a video today, but it's been so long for me. I'm not really sure what advice I can offer. All I can say is I've been there and I know too well the dark feelings. That internal voice telling you that you failed at something really important. The anxious feeling of not wanting to run into that person, but the simultaneous longing to see them. I drank too much, I didn't give myself enough credit for being strong and beautiful, and I did a lot of things wrong. Despite all that, I did some things right... I put everything in storage that mattered (that was 2 totes of clo...