self awareness

Ready to Float

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, January 26, 2025 • Leave a Comment

I'm going to do my level best to CHOOSE to float on those wings of faith I mentioned, to glide along unburdened by fear. (You know, it occurred to me just now, in this moment, that in 2024, I placed great emphasis on The Evolution I...

Remember, Shut Up, Let It Go, See, Love: Brain Tumor Perspectives

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, January 1, 2025 • 1 Comment

I'm awaiting two moments: the one where I wake up and see Keith after surgery and the one when we are looking out across the vast blue waters of the Florida Keys. I'm counting on both of those moments. The rest we will figure out...

Learning to Slow Down: I don’t know how.

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, August 21, 2024 • 1 Comment

I know how to do a lot of things. I know how to start a new business, from the Secretary of State paperwork to the policies and procedures. I know how to get a crying three year old not only into the dance room but...

Authentic Connection vs. Superficial Attention: Pick Your Pony

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, August 9, 2024 • Leave a Comment

I don’t want to make small talk. I want to know the meaning of your tattoo, why you have that scar above your eyebrow, how you look away if someone tells you you’re pretty. I don’t want to compliment your dress. It’s cute, but I...

Dealing with Hard People, Growing In Grace

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, August 7, 2024 • Leave a Comment

Some people are hard. You know how you know? When you’re around them, you have some kind of physical reaction – an uneasy tummy, your heart rate goes up, you feel yourself having to take a deep breath, your eyes squint. Hard people stir your...

Slowing Down & Prioritizing: Insights from Overgrown Trees

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, August 6, 2024 • Leave a Comment

The tree service arrived this morning at 7:15 pm. It was already hot. I had been up since 5:45 am so I could read and drink coffee in peace before the chain saws started screeching. They took a section of my fence out, so they...

“Unfriend me.”

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, August 5, 2024 • Leave a Comment

Kindness seems to be limited to those people who have earned it against our rigorous standards for living and self-aggrandized moral compass. We have decided that we know how to act and how to be, and if people are on board with that, then we...

Hawk Tuah. Just no.

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, June 20, 2024 • Leave a Comment

OK, I’ll just say it. The “hawk tuah” thing disappoints me. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, please go look it up and watch the stupid video. I am not explaining it here. You won’t have to look far. There are memes, merch,...

Things I Learned Today

In Things I Learned Today • by Amanda Herring, Writer, June 10, 2024 • Leave a Comment

Monday, June 10, 2024 I learned that I need to check on what we have in the fridge and in the pantry before I buy groceries. We have 4 unopened jars of pickles, at least 3 bottles of Caesar dressing, and enough chicken stock to...

Learn & Love

In Stories & Reflections • by Amanda Herring, Writer, May 1, 2024 • Leave a Comment

I had a migraine this morning. It started at 5:47 am, and I was awake enough to realize it was happening. It was as if I was purposely roused by The Universe at just the right moment to feel this wicked, little bubble of pain...