top of page
Read about my latest book: Tilt: Seeking Balance in Troubled Times. Available on Kindle NOW!
AUTHOR | PSYCHOTHERAPIST | MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER | ARTIST
My Blog
Short 2-4 minute reads often on current topics, providing tools for addressing communication issues that we all face. These skills come from my forty year career as a psychotherapist. I design original chalk art for each post.
Search
Rebirth
I cracked an egg into a small pan that was sizzling with yellow butter. I lower the flame and watch the clear liquid turn white around...
Dr. Vin
Apr 18, 20222 min read
Ribbon
My five-year-old grandson looked at my shirt over facetime and asked, “Why are you wearing a blue and yellow ribbon, Nana?” “We brought...
Dr. Vin
Mar 10, 20223 min read
Grasshopper
I move my hands across the dark green tips of the thyme plants that are clustered together in the herb bed, until their sweet scent...
Dr. Vin
Feb 22, 20222 min read
Puzzle
I sit down at the table to work on the 500-piece puzzle of a winter cardinal, that is almost finished. All the pieces are done, save the...
Dr. Vin
Jan 13, 20222 min read
Grove
A new year feels like the first day of school I’m ready to fill my calendar And start fresh. I am a water-color painter, a memoir-writer,...
Dr. Vin
Jan 8, 20221 min read
Ring
I lay on the couch petting the soft red fur of my little terrier, when I notice that the ring I always wear on my right hand is gone. I...
Dr. Vin
Dec 25, 20212 min read
Rain
I wake to the sound of howling wind and rain shaking the trees, forcing them to try and hold their ground. I go to the bedroom window to...
Dr. Vin
Dec 15, 20212 min read
Test
“Number four: gently insert the entire tip of the swab inside your nose and rub the wall of your nostril five times.” We had spread out...
Dr. Vin
Dec 14, 20212 min read
Geese
I was in a bad mood, so I went for a walk. For the first mile around the houses, my middle was shaky, like I wasn’t my whole self, and my...
Dr. Vin
Nov 15, 20212 min read
Camino
My brother Rick exited his car on a pitch-black night in an unfamiliar rural area. He was searching for a hidden place to urinate. As he...
Dr. Vin
Oct 17, 20212 min read
Visit
I am writing my memoir with the help of a talented writing coach. The theme is my infertility journey, which was in the mid-1980’s. Today...
Dr. Vin
Sep 23, 20212 min read
Smoke
We stand in a line on the asphalt parking lot at three on a summer morning and watch the smoke pour out of the roof of our family grocery...
Dr. Vin
Sep 13, 20214 min read
Abortion
“What are the first three big things you would buy as an adult, once you were earning enough money?” My nephew’s eighth grade teacher...
Dr. Vin
Sep 4, 20213 min read
Owl
I walk down the path behind the church and come upon the bright yellow eyes of an owl in the eucalyptus tree. He is just twenty feet...
Dr. Vin
Aug 20, 20212 min read
Share The Gold
When do we choose ourselves and when do we choose the needs of others? I watched Simone Biles eyes wobble as she landed poorly on her...
Dr. Vin
Aug 10, 20213 min read
Phone
Speeding to the airport early one morning my husband said, “Check the GPS on your phone to see if this is the fastest route.” I unzip my...
Dr. Vin
Aug 4, 20214 min read
Hammock
I lie on the new hammock and look up at pepper tree branches lace their twigs through the soft blue sky on a warm morning. I breathe and...
Dr. Vin
Jul 6, 20213 min read
Fly
I hear a rustling of wings and turn to see a Coopers hawk awkwardly plunge into a low-lying orange flowered lantana bush. Given plenty of...
Dr. Vin
Jun 23, 20212 min read
Gift
When we read a story, we often paint it with our own emotional colors. If the narrative makes sense, we nod in agreement and move...
Dr. Vin
Jun 19, 20212 min read
Dove
While out walking, I linger at a fence, looking closely at a vine dripping with lovely purple flowers that have yellow centers. I am...
Dr. Vin
Jun 8, 20212 min read
bottom of page