When I met my husband in the late summer of 1999 I knew him to be a high school music teacher who had, only days before, relocated back to his hometown. When I agreed to meet him at a local family restaurant for what would be our first date, however, I arrived to find...
Recovering from a traumatic experience is a highly subjective process that is different for everyone, and it is a process that you will go through constantly throughout a lifetime. While every one of us wants to heal and be whole again after a sudden terrible event,...
I wrote this post in 2016 on my first blog, The Extra Rib. This reflection on the changing phases of parenting as a child grows was written when my daughter, Ida, was in 6th grade. Ida graduated from high school this past year, 2022, and she continues to learn in...
a story by Melanie Makovsky January 1994 The Sign, Ace of Base We’re sitting here in English diagramming sentences, and everyone has to participate. It’s the most boring activity ever, yet I am incredibly nervous. Everyone has to participate, and we are...
by Melanie Makovsky December 1994 Never Is A Promise, Fiona Apple Christmas is a joke this year, and not the funny kind. It is a farce. We are sitting here in our pajamas opening presents as if it’s a normal Christmas, a typical Christmas, when it is anything...
Much like learning to walk with a sprained ankle, living with physical and emotional health challenges takes balance and practice. I’m convinced that our own mental and emotional health has an immeasurable impact on our physical health. This may work in reverse as...
Have you ever noticed that when you start out with the intention of writing or talking with someone about something you’ve learned, God sets you up so that you experience it yourself in the process? For example, in 2010 my husband had plans to make a major career...
My greatest frustrations in life always come from the weakness of my body. When I consider the incomprehensible fact that God designed and fashioned our minds and bodies, with all their complexity in function and all their ability in thinking and learning, I realize...
It’s probably abundantly obvious, and I know I’ve said it before too, but I really, really love words. But here’s what you may not know: I like bad words a lot too. Not just swear words, although I admit that I have an affinity for those as well, but angry words. In...
My husband is an ultra-marathon runner. At least that’s the term we both knew for it when he got started doing it. Since then the longer-than-a-marathon events have become known simply as “ultras” and the competitors (if you can call them that) are “ultra runners.”...
Melanie Makovsky has seen trauma turn into triumph through the lens of faithfulness. By examining hardships under the light of God's grace and love, she's learned to value suffering and loss as catalysts for deepening faith and discovering simple, everyday beauty.
The content presented on this site is based on my personal experience. I am not a mental health professional and this content is not to be considered a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis or treatment.
