Alexis Hartz, Author

I'm really struggling with my writing, like I never have before.        I'm terrified of talking about my faith ----  and yet it's everything to me.          How do you get people to understand how big  and how un-be-lieve-able-ly  it changes everything in life?       How do you get people to understand how,  if they just pay a little  attention they will quickly see that every moment in each of our lives is uniquely designed in a most wonder-filled way?         How do you write about that without sounding trite?          I know it's possible.  I'm just facing a wall of fear right now.         Mostly about what people will think about  my faith.           My God is real, and he is present in every moment.         I have no doubt.   ...

I shaved my cat yesterday.        Cat grooming is as common as dog grooming in Arizona where she and I have lived for most of our life together. It's been an annual ritual between us for about 8 years now.        Both of us appreciate the perks of her spring shave.  She absolutely, clearly, communicates how proud she is of her new naked self, and I don't have to deal with gooey hairballs and other assorted remnants of the shedding process.       This year, with our move to Colorado for the summer,  I put it off, thinking that she might need that a winter coat for some chilly -- or even snowy, April nights.       We've had a few cool nights since we arrived, but not cold enough for Cat to hold on to her fur.  oh my!  Every day, and every night, she's pulling at her belly hair, you know, the really soft stuff, that comes out in tuffs?  Yes, that's it, all gooed up with cat saliva and tos...