Archive for 2021
The Season of and Secret of Delight
Our daughter Madeline’s piano teacher, Mrs. McGuire, started teaching Madeline when she was four. She made it clear from the start that her goal was not to turn our daughter into Rachmaninov. Her goal was for Madeline to love playing piano for the rest of her life. Because students who are cajoled/pushed/dragged to the piano, […]
The Shortest TLC Thanksgiving Blog Ever
Each year I have written a Thanksgiving blog. This year I wrote two long potential Thanksgiving blogs. I worked very hard on them to make them “meaningful”. I woke up this morning and tossed them. What I really want to say is it is not as complicated as we make it. […]
The Gift of Trust
When you give, if you trust, you give freely. You don’t ask in return. You just give. This is a rare thing. I witness it all the time in people like you at TLC. A kind gesture without ulterior motive; a belief that if you reveal your vulnerability, you will not be […]
What Do You Do When There is No Tomorrow?
TLC Blog – What Do You Do When There is No Tomorrow? That day in college, I was at the pool for one reason and one reason only. To impress a sophomore. Make her notice me. So she would then go out with me. I had my dive planned perfectly. Push off the springboard with […]
Brainwashed at TLC?
Sometime in the last year, I was telling TLC co-founder, Barb Wilkinson, about a tennis mom who said she would never send her child to TLC because “they brainwash them there about sportsmanship, and I don’t want my child to be taken advantage of in tournaments.” My tendency, upon hearing things like that, is to […]
Liz Retzlaff: Truth-teller
“I’ve known Liz since I started working at TLC 8 years ago. She’s experienced being the only woman in a leadership role at times, sexism from coworkers and campers, and many times where she’s felt alone. And through all of that she’s persisted and is one of the strongest leaders, male or female, in our […]
Let Love Serve in Action
When you come across someone with the TLC attitude, you notice. When it is someone working right beside you, you are grateful daily for it. When Kevin Lungay, TLC’s Assistant Director of Operations, told me a month ago he was leaving for another position at a non-profit TLC has collaborated with, Youth Frontiers, there were […]
A Day to Celebrate: Happy National Girls & Women in Sports Day!
Today is February 3rd, 2021. For most of us, it’s a typical Wednesday. We woke up, had our morning cup of coffee, got ready for work or school, and are now taking our lunch break while scrolling through social media. On what seems like a typical day for most, for me, this is a […]
Claiming Today
Steve Wilkinson, meet Sasha. Sasha, meet Steve. The two of you would have gotten along beautifully. Six years ago today, Steve died. He lived as full a life as anyone I’ve known, but it was still too short. He didn’t decide to go, terminal cancer decided for him. The thing he continued to learn (and […]