I’m No Superstar

I’m No Superstar is a blog for people like me who want to make a difference in the world but know they aren’t activists. Each post contains a social action idea that most of us could do, a book that’s worth reading, or a link to a website that offers other ideas. Oh, and it’s all introduced by a sometimes quirky story from my life.

Floundering

What’s the most terrifying thing for someone who speaks and writes about living on purpose? Being lost. For much of the last four years, I’ve felt lost. I’ve struggled to find my footing. Floundered, really. Grief and gloom were too-constant friends. I’m not on solid ground yet, but I have been discovering a few ways

The Irresistible Aroma of Grace

I parked near the side entrance to the mall, snagging a spot as close to the door as possible. The weather was strange, and I hurried to get inside without the need of an umbrella. The automatic doors spread open, and suddenly the aroma of cinnamon enveloped me. No, not just cinnamon, cinnamon and butter.

Long-burning hope

I was scrollingthrough Twitterjust before thefirst Sunday of Adventand saw this tweet: That’s a cool idea, I thought. “The Hope candle burns the longest.” It makes sense that we need hope in our lives to burn the longest, to be there, alight, to the—hopefully not-bitter—end. We want it to carry us through. We need it

Jesus didn’t die for my rights

If you happened to notice that I haven’t posted a blog in a while, there’s a reason. It’s this blog post, which I knew I wanted to write, or needed to write, but feared to write. When Jesus died on the cross, he died to put us into a right relationship with God. He died

From “we” to “me”

My friend’s husband died today. And I just keep thinking: How do you go instantly from “us” and “we” to “I” and “me”? How does a 40-year+ way of being, of living, of thinking, change so suddenly, so dramatically? (An FYI here: This won’t be a fun, uplifting post. I actually wrote it last week,

The Secret to Great Conversations

I write for a living. This year, after some coaching advice, I’ve further refined my writing niche—what work do I love and find that I’m good at that pays. Turns out it’s writing for foundations that support hospitals or universities.  Because of that realization, I follow the fundraising topic on LinkedIn. This week a post

Congratulations, you survived a pandemic

So who knew last March that this pandemic would last so long?  It’s been a long haul. But as we look at things opening up, let’s take some time to think about exactly what that return to normal might look like. Do we want normal to be exactly the way it was in February of

When the walk becomes a slog

It was a year ago on Saturday that the first Covid-19 shutdown occurred. But it was in China, and most of us weren’t even paying attention. And then, less than two months later, we were all in the thick of it. Two weeks, we were told. But here in our region of Pennsylvania, at least,

Can we put this over the top?

Books are my friends. I love getting lost in a good book. I explore new worlds. I learn so much (from nonfiction and fiction). I escape to someplace exciting when life gets too hard (2020, anyone?) My love of reading is what took me into the world of tutoring in elementary schools. I want kids

 

Have Carol Speak For Your Group

An accomplished and flexible speaker, Carol tailors her topics to fit the theme and timeframes of your meeting, conference, seminar or retreat.