Anita Godwin, 65, of Jacksonville, passed away just as the sun faded into the inky sky Oct. 18, 2020. She came into this world Jan. 15, 1955, the firstborn daughter of Francis and Anna Bell Bunch, who both preceded her in death. We will be holding a celebration of Anita's life in Arkansas at a… Continue reading Anita Godwin
My beautiful, broken body
This body of mine has plenty to show for its short time here on earth so far, from the simple stubbed toes and skinned knees of childhood to the surgeries that have marked my later years. Each scar has become a reminder that pain is fleeting ,and that slowly, what was once raw and bruised… Continue reading My beautiful, broken body
Resurfacing
When I was around 9, we moved from a small everyday normal home on a small everyday normal street to a new house.It was only 6 miles from House A to House B, but it was in another county. In my mind, it might as well have been moving to another universe. How would Maki, my… Continue reading Resurfacing
The small losses
Miscarriage is thought to happen in at least one in five pregnancies. That number might be a conservative estimate because some women never realize they were pregnant in the first place. Heartbreakingly common, yet rarely do we talk about pregnancy loss except in hushed whispers and tearful conversations with family and close friends. It’s too… Continue reading The small losses
Sea legs
If there was one true thing in this world, it was that I could always beat Nick at leg wrestling. I came about this accomplishment quite naturally – through my genes, mostly. I'm from pretty hearty stock, in case you haven't noticed. That, and the 20 years of dance probably didn't hurt either. I got… Continue reading Sea legs
Orange crush
It's MS Awareness Week, and I've nearly succeeded in proudly donning our signature color every single day. Funny how orange, which I once associated with the MS prison I felt locked up in, now has a different connotation. I see the color as one of power, strength, resilience, solidarity. I wasn't able to make it… Continue reading Orange crush
Rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated
When we last left off, our heroine was fumbling over her myriad passwords and tolerating the brutal Arkansas summer with aplomb, whatever that is. As the months ticked by, she bravely trudged on, juggling her jobs and home life and health. On the MS front, things are pretty OK. Not perfect, no. That would require… Continue reading Rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated
Is it just me?
I can't decide whether I'm a victim of my own technophilia or the scrubbing-bubbles effect MS can have on the brain. Lately, it's logins. I have nearly four dozen of them, all told. Two I know by heart. The rest are a confusing heap of random qwertiness that leaves me grasping at straws for the… Continue reading Is it just me?
‘Mine is not a unique situation’
So said David Rakoff in the months before he died. "Everyone loses ability. If you're lucky, this happens over the course of a few decades. If you're not, (meh). But the story is essentially the same." And he dances. A few sweeping, sentimental gestures. A rueful smile. His grace is beyond words, although he does those… Continue reading ‘Mine is not a unique situation’
I’m positive the glass is half empty
Nick and I have a long-running debate in our house. It's part of the oil-and-water, fire-and-ice dynamic we've functioned on for years. His sunny-side-up brand of optimism strikes me as Pollyanna-ish and naive. My glass-half-empty, pessimistic realistic approach to life grates on him. But I might be close to winning this argument. Hear me out.… Continue reading I’m positive the glass is half empty
One, Wild & Precious 