July 4th is such an amazing holiday for all Americans because it reminds us of the pride and honor that comes with being a citizen of this amazing country. Our home, the United States of America, is a special place with people of all different backgrounds, ideologies, and shared experiences. One great part of our country, that we can all rally behind, is our citizens’ deep respect for our nation’s servicemembers. The millions of people who have served in our nation’s military since our … [Read more...]
Standing United: How Do We Get There?
In our current age of divisiveness, it feels to me as if we have somehow forgotten America’s motto, E Pluribus Unum, or out of many, one. Instead, our society appears to be increasingly splintered along fault lines defined by our unique differences. In article headlines and warring social media posts, we see our nation’s division evidenced in reports of the severe mistreatment (and killings) of people of color, immigrants, people of different religions, ideologies, and political leanings, and … [Read more...]
Honoring the World’s Best Dads
This Father’s Day, as I do every year, I am thinking of two of the best fathers I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing: my own father, Cliff Decker, and my late husband 1st Lt. James L. Hull, who was such a loving father to our daughter, Laura. To me, there was never and will never be anyone who compares to these remarkable men. Though they are no longer with me, I think of them and celebrate them every day by treasuring the memories I have of our times together. Fathers like my dad and Larry … [Read more...]
May is Mental Health Awareness Month
Since 1949, the month of May has been observed as Mental Health Awareness Month in the United States. Several national organizations such as NAMI, Mental Health America, and other affiliates spotlight Mental Health Awareness Month to elevate the importance of this issue and to help end the stigma surrounding mental health. I was one of those individuals who suffered from a variety of mental health issues at different periods of my life, including clinical depression, self-harm (specifically, … [Read more...]
Winning a Second IBPA Benjamin Franklin Gold Award
This past Friday (May 8), I was honored to receive the Independent Book Publisher’s Association Benjamin Franklin Gold Award for the top book title in the “Self Help” category. These prestigious awards recognize excellence in writing and design and are regarded as one of the highest national honors for independent book writers and publishers. Hundreds of authors applied for this year’s Benjamin Franklin awards; to claim the top honor in their book category. My most recent book, Your Turn: … [Read more...]
