Author: tonihall805@outlook.com

I’ve often claimed that spring is my favorite time of the year.  Even in sunny California, spring is an exceptionally beautiful time with the blossoming fruit trees, the wisteria and star jasmine that take turns perfuming my backyard and the inevitable return of the freesia and dahlias I  planted a few years ago.  Roses bloom and the nursery is filled with colorful annuals.  But spring has always meant more substantial life changes beyond my garden.  Continue reading “Spring Always Brings Me Change”

I don’t want to read James Comey’s new book, “A Higher Loyalty”.  I’m not sure I need to after watching him be interviewed day after day.  I think I’ve formed an opinion of him.  And I find that I am truly ambivalent when it comes to him. Continue reading “Thoughts About James Comey”

This week I had the privilege of hearing the experience and expectations of a queer male student on our campus.  As he described his experience, he kept qualifying each account with a “but we only have” or “but we need to have” or “but we don’t have.”  At first, I felt a bit offended by how this student described the glass as half empty and not as half full.  I think sometimes in our push for needed reforms, we neglect to recognize and celebrate progress. Continue reading “Recognizing Progress”

It seems to me that grown children maintain and even perpetuate an impression of their parents that the parents themselves may not even recognize as an image of themselves. I’ve encountered that with my own children. To argue about their image of me is a senseless act of futility that can be disruptive to the current relationship. Continue reading “Musings about Lasting Impressions”

Trauma is defined simply as a deeply distressing or disturbing experience. On this resurrection Sunday, we are reminded that Jesus suffered the trauma of crucifixion on Friday that included physical and emotional pain plus humiliation.  But God raised him up after three days to take His place as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.   As human beings, we all experience varying degrees of trauma at different points in our lives.

Continue reading “Trauma”

The ship on a multicultural country has sailed. But there are still people on the docks holding ropes, trying desperately to pull it back. These are the short-sighted individuals who want to “make America great again”. They are afraid of what a future America might look like without white people in the majority exercising their visible and invisible privilege to the ignorable detriment of the rest of us. As a compassionate person, my task is to invite those on the dock to climb on board and to puck others from the water before they drown if they are willing to climb into the ship. Continue reading “Multicultural America”

I spent the last week in Washington D.C. at the annual NADOHE Conference for Chief Diversity Officers working on college campuses across the nation.  NADOHE stands for the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education.  After the conference, I spent seven hours touring the new Museum of African American History and Culture, the newest of the Smithsonian museums located on the mall. Both events were eye-opening experiences that got me thinking. Continue reading “A Changing Era in Race Relations”

I’m spending the weekend after a conference with my daughter in DC to visit the new Museum of African American History and then on to Baltimore to spend time with my son and new daughter in law.  I’ll keep you posted next week so I can be fully present here.

I had an interesting conversation with my daughter about what it means to be a black female in a country still struggling with bias against people of color and women.  I’m sad that my generation couldn’t do more to eliminate all the bias women and people of color still have to overcome.  We all have a part to play in leveling the field, but until we confront and eliminate bias, women and people of color will have to continue to work harder and smarter to succeed. Continue reading “Working Harder and Smarter to Succeed”

In recent days, I had two dreams (that I can remember) that heighten my awareness of my dependency on and fear of all these technological devices I have around me.  I think my  subconscious might be trying to warn me. Continue reading “All These Devices”