One of my favorite memories of my time in Illinois is of an annual tradition I began when I was superintendent of the schools in River Forest, a Chicago suburb. Two classes of students came at a time.  The children sat on the carpet, while my staff and I served them hot cocoa and sugar cookies. I pulled up a rocking chair in front of the fireplace and opened my traditional read-aloud book, The West Texas Chili Monster by Judy Cox and illustrated by John O’Brian. The children loved the bright … [Read more...]

This was a special day. I picked up my 93-year-old mother at the Memory Care facility where she lives. Mother has always enjoyed dressing up for special occasions and today was no different. She was wearing a beautiful red blouse. Matching red lipstick emphasized her smile, and her coiffed silver hair shimmered in the sunlight as we walked through the courtyard.   Mom’s smile telegraphed she knew me and remembered we were going out for lunch. We arrived at the restaurant and while being … [Read more...]

I’m excited to share this preview of my memoir, Where the Water Meets the Sand, available May 10 at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, and at your favorite bookseller. This video highlights the book’s themes of loss, depression, addiction, courage, love, and hope – and my mission to bring comfort to those suffering in silence. You’ll find more details and photos from the book, and resources for support and treatment, at www.tyramanning.com. Special thanks to Southpaw Video for the masterful … [Read more...]

It’s hard to believe it has been 45 years since the day I found out Larry’s plane had gone down in Vietnam. By that time in my stay at the Menninger Clinic, the hospital had become like a home away from home for me. Hope had begun to overtake despair as I worked toward what I saw as a chance for a fresh start. My work there was so motivated by Larry’s encouragement to do what the doctors advised and get well. Even though he was halfway around the world, he was still a part of my daily life. I … [Read more...]

Welcome to my website. This is Tyra Manning writing to say thanks for stopping by. I put this site together with a very talented team in order to give people a place to come when they are looking for more information about my book, my speaking engagements, or me. You’ll find everything you could want to know here on the pages about my book, my speaking engagements, and my journey. This is the first entry of my blog, which I’ll be updating regularly with information about events where I’ll … [Read more...]