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Sharon's Blog


The warriors at our libraries
True confession: I've been hanging out with people I don't regularly associate with, at least not in these numbers. I thought I knew a...
Sharon Emery
Sep 27, 20232 min read
142 views
0 comments


Now I'm with myself
Sha'Carri Richardson, 23, became the fastest woman in the world on Aug. 21, 2023, when she ran 100 meters in 10.65 seconds. To really...
Sharon Emery
Aug 31, 20232 min read
152 views
2 comments


Your mission: Belong to a place
Believe it or not, belongingness is a word. Moreover, it's a thing right now. Alienation – the antithesis of belonging – is blamed for...
Sharon Emery
Aug 18, 20232 min read
1,076 views
10 comments


Watching for the light
I can't tell you how many summers I've spent rereading Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse.
Let's just say many.
Sharon Emery
Aug 1, 20232 min read
181 views
4 comments


My famous washing machine
This is not your typical appliance resurrection: I don't use the words “desperate” and “beloved” casually when I say we are currently...
Sharon Emery
Jul 19, 20232 min read
140 views
7 comments


Who wants to act their age?
Maybe you've had this experience: You wake up groggy one morning, and while trying to maneuver a piece of bread into the toaster, you...
Sharon Emery
Jul 5, 20232 min read
176 views
1 comment


The magic of being there
Have you noticed? We're absolutely captivated by being in proximity to something we love. Even if we can barely see it, being in its...
Sharon Emery
Jun 10, 20232 min read
243 views
6 comments


The world could use some applause
I get the biggest kick out of clapping for someone – applauding what they've done while softly chanting, “You're good, you're really...
Sharon Emery
May 21, 20232 min read
238 views
5 comments


Eating our good intentions
While mulling everything my doctor wants me to do – exercise, eat right, get enough vitamins/ minerals, etc. – I decided to make a deal...
Sharon Emery
Apr 29, 20232 min read
177 views
8 comments


Our own truths
As soon as I read it, I knew Joan Didion's searing insight from her book “The White Album” was the perfect epigraph for mine: “We tell...
Sharon Emery
Feb 27, 20232 min read
182 views
0 comments


Resisting the comfort of the known
One of the things that terrified me as I struggled to write my memoir was the realization that I had to give over my storytelling powers...
Sharon Emery
Feb 10, 20232 min read
146 views
7 comments


The camera doesn't lie
I must admit, I don't like most photos of myself. I'll spare you the specifics, but let me just say that I really work at it, and I'm...
Sharon Emery
Jan 27, 20232 min read
245 views
15 comments


Remembering who you are
When I was 15, I holed up with my best friend Suzie, from across the street, to dream about what it would be like when we were finally...
Sharon Emery
Jan 12, 20232 min read
181 views
24 comments


What should stay and what should go
Among New Year's resolutions, are there any more popular than getting rid of excess pounds and getting rid of excess stuff? No,...
Sharon Emery
Dec 28, 20222 min read
167 views
3 comments


Letting Go
It's big, badly faded, and purple. But I love it. And I have loved it – for nearly 23 years. Not only that, it has a curved frame,...
Sharon Emery
Nov 30, 20222 min read
227 views
8 comments


The power we hold
Skin may be the largest organ of the human body, but really, aside from wanting it to look youthful until the day we die, we don't much...
Sharon Emery
Nov 5, 20222 min read
210 views
5 comments


Why don't they call THAT disability??
Having a disability gives you a valuable perspective on the world. It can make you more empathetic, more accepting, more all-around...
Sharon Emery
Oct 21, 20222 min read
163 views
4 comments


Memory + Music = Magic
A crescendo of nostalgia poured down after my favorite band announced they'd be celebrating the tenth anniversary of their first album...
Sharon Emery
Oct 6, 20222 min read
186 views
7 comments


Navigating transitions
The march into fall has more power to signal a transition than any other change in the seasons. The cooler nights of late August and...
Sharon Emery
Sep 22, 20222 min read
150 views
4 comments


Celebrating being mortal
My Mortality Club met recently after a three-year hiatus. The break in what was supposed to be our annual gathering was created by the...
Sharon Emery
Sep 7, 20222 min read
149 views
1 comment
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