A Light in the Fog

When I was a little girl growing up in LA, it was quite a sunny paradise… most of the time.


There was far less traffic and pollution, heck, we even had vacant lots nearby where we caught lizards.


But there were foggy nights. I loved to sit and watch the fog roll in. Very mysterious as it shifted and swirled and hid the world around us.


Sometimes at night when we were driving to our home near the beach, the fog was so dense my father couldn’t see well enough to keep going. He would ask one of us to get out of the car and walk along the curb, then he would creep along slowly behind us, guided by the headlights shining on our legs until we were safely home.


The past few months I’ve felt as if I were creeping along, trying to find my way through the fog of recovery from surgery. It’s been good to know that I’m not alone and that others have been there, shining a light in the darkness and showing me the way forward.


Many of the tweens and teens I talk to these days feel like they have been in a fog the past few years and are still stumbling their way forward, a bit disoriented and off track, but holding on to the hope of better days ahead.


This holiday season, each of us can be a light to those fumbling in the fog. Let’s gather with those we love. Share stories of triumphs and challenges, good times and hard times, and how we can get through them. As Marshall P. Duke, PhD, of Emory University said, “... an invitation to listen to a story - most any sort of story - is easily the most powerful way of engaging human beings.”


Let the stories begin! It’s as easy as saying, “Did I ever tell you about the time…”


Happy Failing Forward at Home and School,


Anne