“So Thanksgiving with your parents, Christmas with mine?” “Yeah, we’ll swap next year.” “….When will it be our turn? My husband and I have had this conversation all four years of our marriage. Four is such a tiny number in comparison to the six decades of tradition with which we are competing. No wonder they…
Dear Clarence,
A version of this essay first appeared as part of Literary Mama’s After Page One series on craft. Dear Clarence, my creative genius, The last time I wrote here, in my only journal, I had just arrived in a hotel room in Istanbul, belly starting to swell from five months of growing Acacia and finally…
Unmasking the First Trimester
This essay first appeared at Good Mother Project on October 19, 2016. I sit at my desk drinking cup after cup of herbal tea. Invested in the talk radio streaming through his earbuds, my officemate doesn’t notice the change from my typical thermos of black coffee. We offer sparking water, still water (straight from…
The Five Stages of Grief When Your Child Calls the Babysitter Mom
This piece first appeared in the October 2016 issue of Mothers Always Write. Full-time work was my only option after our daughter was born. We savored ten weeks of unpaid bonding before I bought a bigger pair of khakis and headed back into the office, breast pump and lactation cookies in hand. While I responded…
Bedtime: My New Beginning
This post first appeared at The Good Mother Project. As I look over our plates of tacos (again), I can see the day reflected in my husband’s eyes. After picking our two-year-old Tasmanian devil up from the babysitter, they have survived Costco, the community pool, and a quick trip back to the office, all without the…
How to Really Be Friends With Your Sibling
This post originally appeared at Upwrite Magazine and was fine tuned by their craft-focused and hope-filled editing process. Pay them a visit, you won’t be disappointed. My sister came over for dinner the other night. I sautéed the greens while she rolled Play-doh pancakes with my daughter. We talked about applying for a new job (me), where to find…
Cries for Justice Inspired by My Daughter
I didn’t cry when Mufasa died in the Lion King until after I lost my grandma. I didn’t cry at weddings until after I got married. I didn’t cry about world events until after I had a daughter. Now I can’t stop crying. Every drone strike and every natural disaster and every shooting death is…
The Good Dishes
Darkness flows up from the cellar. It’s been over two years since we settled into this house and we still haven’t found the will to install a light, not even one of those touch lights that sticks to the wall. It’s okay though, I know where to reach now. The good dishes rest on wooden…
Melissa Ressler 