The stories come from real life—either it happened just the way it says, or the event is a part of someone’s life and I took some literary license, or one word or phrase or snippet of a scene got me started. Who isn’t in a relationship of some kind— professional, personal, or both? Although weren’t we all told about the dangers of merging those two?

Some tips that emerge out of  reading Seedlings may fill the gaps for you, offering the ‘stuff’ other people learned while you were surviving your childhood, cutting classes, working the second job, having a baby, or believing the myths of “I can’t do that” or “I’m just too old for that now.”

This collection of essays offers a bit of everyday easy wisdom—from the power of the triumvirate of “yes dear, I’m sorry, you’re right,” to the styles of leave-taking, from leaving a party to leaving a relationship.

Each story is written with a charm and honesty that comes from a sensory love of detail and the power of words, and told with love and affection for who we are—imperfect, goofy, beautiful, intelligent adventurers.

View the YouTube videos: Introduction to Seedlings, and reading excerpts: “Losing Things” pp.42-45, “Big Al” pp.54-57, “A Rose for Karen” pp.87-94, and “Leave-Taking” pp.148-153.