Blog

Co-written with Elizabeth White. Originally published in LLLI’s LEAVEN

Even when there are several Leaders at your Series Meeting, one person is usually designated as the facilitator, the one who’s actually “leading” the meeting. Attendees of Chapter or Area Council Meetings also need someone in charge to keep discussions on track and to make the most of the time together. And, whether it’s at a Series Meeting, Chapter Meeting, an Area Council Meeting, or several Leaders meeting with a Leader Applicant, the basic functions of a facilitator remain the same. She needs to be prepared to:

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #83, May/June 1999

I remember the moment so well. I was 12 years old, and I was sitting on our piano bench in my California home. Mr. Scott, the piano teacher, had just arrived. He started talking about all these little black dots on the sheets propped up on our old upright piano. I told him I didn’t know what they were. “How could you not know what this music is, Kathy!” he said, astonished. “Your parents are both musicians! You really can’t read music!?” I really couldn’t read music.

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #91, September/October 2000

It was a subdued crowd that night on the airplane from Denver to Chicago. Hot and dispirited, we’d all had to make new travel arrangements after a three-hour delay. I’d phoned home to report that my connecting flight to Pittsburgh had been cancelled and that I’d let them know my new arrangements when I knew what they were. Many of us sprawled in our seats sighing with the aggravation of it all.

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #79, September/October 1998

I am envious of the people who live in Millvale. It’s a small community crowded onto the sides of a ravine above the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh. When I need my typewriter or VCR fixed, I drive down the Glenshaw Valley to a small repair shop there. After dropping off my appliance, I shop and browse on Millvale’s short, snug streets and watch the inhabitants. They walk to their bank, bakery, and ball fields. They can stroll to their little park and sit on benches with their friends and neighbors.

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #72, July/August 1997

It happens to all of us once in a while and usually when we least expect it. A lull. A break. A pause in the whirlwind of La Leche League meetings, projects, and phone calls. And although the break may be as short as a day or as long as a couple of weeks, it is during this lull that a measure of discipline and catching up is most valuable. Volunteers in LLL have found the following to be useful in keeping up with their work and preparing for the next busy period of challenges:

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #94, March/April 2001

It was the first month in our sons’ new school district, and I received an invitation to go to a “Newcomers’ Meeting” at the school administration office with other move-in parents and the superintendent. I was expecting folding chairs, bad coffee, and long speeches.

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Co-written with Judy Minami. Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #70, March-April 1997

For Area Administrators, major La Leche League events such as Area Conferences, Area Council Meetings, and other LLL gatherings usually entail more than simply attending sessions and gleaning information. You may be involved in planning the sessions or a specific event such as the banquet. You may be responsible for meals, the bookstore, or registration. Moore than likely you’ll also be asked to share your expertise by presenting a session or two.

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #70, March/April 1997

On our recent family trip to England, I was enthusiastic about visiting the town of St. Ives. I wanted to walk down the path to the little village just like the man in the Mother Goose nursery rhyme. I had also read that St. Ives was an artists’ colony. As we rattled through the hedge-lined motorway to the northwest coast of Cornwall, I envisioned myself poling around the quaint little village shops and tiny art galleries.

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Originally published in LLL US Western Division’s Connections #86, November/December 1999

When my family moved into our home on the top of a ridge in north Pittsburgh, we inherited a property full of work. Tree stumps at our feet, tree limbs in our faces, rotting railroad ties, old brush piles, and overgrown wild rose thickets all begged for action. Starting with our first winter here, we began the process of clearing our land. With a variety of saws, pruners, and sturdy gloves, we cleared, cut, and cleaned.

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