“In this life you will have trouble.” Man, do I believe this statement. Not simply because Jesus said the words, but because I’ve personally experienced trouble. And now that I’ve lived a half a century, time and again I’ve seen bad things happen to good people, people I love. But what if it’s your own
I haven’t straightened my hair since January 2016. One Sunday at church a gorgeous African American gal ran her hands over my flat-ironed hair and said, “You don’t have to do this, you know. You could wear it the way God made it.” I squinched my nose at her. Because I was pretty sure my
“Since I would like to officiate in the NFL someday, I am wondering what steps I need to take.” Twenty-eight years ago my husband Tony, currently an ACC football official, read those words in the Dallas Cowboys Weekly and began his officiating football journey. Since Tony says West Virginia currently needs officials in all sports, I
by Cindy McKee My weight-loss story goes back three decades to the birth of my first child. For 32 years, I tried to lose the baby fat using various weight-loss plans and supplements. I rode the roller coaster of weight gain and loss. As soon as I stopped dieting, the pounds would come back with
by Karen Haring Just this week, I was talking through a struggle with my counselor. One that made me cry, one that I wasn’t sure how to navigate. “Do you think it could be because you devalue yourself?” Ugh. Don’t you just love it when your counselor/friend/significant other nails it? And you didn’t even see
I used to be a grocery store snob, shopping only at Giant Eagle and Kroger. I never set food inside Aldi even though I heard a lot of buzz about their “awesome produce” and “super low prices.” At the time I thought: Surely low prices mean low quality. I was so “bougie” about grocery shopping
In response to my “Life in the Fast(ing) Lane” post, I was asked (multiple times) what to expect with intermittent fasting. Though I’m a baby at this, having only done it since January, I have lots of thoughts on the topic, so here goes! I think the best approach to fasting as a lifestyle not
Confession: I peeked inside my daughter’s diary once. I didn’t intend to, but there it was, wide open on her bedside table. Instead of disclosing her crush-of-the-moment, her fifth-grade handwriting read, “I wish Mom didn’t care so much about how the house looks.” Her secret ran me through like a skewer. The constant clutter in
Anyone want (or need) to lose a few pounds? At the end of January, I asked Tony Bear to be my guinea pig for a weight-loss experiment. See, as an ACC college football official, Tony frequently appears on national television, mostly during fall weekends. The rest of the year, he watches dozens of recorded games
Dear Abby had it easy when it came to giving advice. She counseled strangers. From afar. She didn’t see or hear their fury, angst, and excuses when they disagreed with what she had to say. Countless times over the years Tony Bear has shared his giving advice protocol with me. “When people ask for my
