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A woman without a man

“A woman without a husband is not a problem to be solved,” writes Jane Austen in her book Persuasion. Jane Austen is a wise woman. I am reading Persuasion again. –Joy

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Defining your worth

“I do know one thing about me: I don’t measure myself by others’ expectations or let others define my worth,” says Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

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Expect to be taken seriously

When artist Genesis Tramaine spoke April 19, 2023, at Arts & Letters Live in Dallas, a young woman raised her hand to ask a question. “When did people start taking your art seriously?” the young woman asked. “I didn’t wait for my work to be considered legitimate,” Tramaine answered. “I expected it. When I paint […]

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Avoid restaurants with gardens!

The Taliban have banned families and women from restaurants with gardens or green spaces in Afghanistan’s northwestern Herat province, The Dallas Morning News reported in its April 11, 2023, issue. They’re concerned about “the mixing of genders” in such places!?

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How are the women treated?

The best of you are those who are best to the women,” the Prophet Muhammad said. I found this quote in Manal Al-Sharif’s book Daring to Drive. –Joy

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Wonderful, but not perfect

Families are never perfect. Holidays are never perfect. The world is not perfect. This holiday season, I am going to enjoy my wonderful, but not perfect, family, and I am going to have a wonderful, but not perfect, holiday. –Joy

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On to Thanksgiving

The elections are over—or almost over–and I’m ready to move on to happy times. Let’s begin the holidays. At least, there are a few things we can agree on. As Nora Ephron once said, “The turkey. The sweet potatoes. The stuffing. The pumpkin pie. Is there anything else we can agree so vehemently about?” –Joy

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Ghastly goblins

Here’s my message for this year’s Halloween. “Be sure to vote to keep the ghastly goblins out of government!” –Joy

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No more secrets

“Secrets work on me like splinters. I like them out.” These words are from a delightful book by Michelle Huneven. It’s called Search, and it’s about a search committee looking for a new minister for a progressive California Universal Unitarian church.

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Being normal?

“My darling girl,” says Aunt Frances in Practical Magic, “when are you going to realize that being normal is not necessarily a virtue? It rather denotes a lack of courage.” I found this quote in the gift shop at the Albuquerque Museum. –Joy

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