“When I worked in a Japanese private school in Tokyo, BACK BEFORE YOU WERE BORN, probably, the name of the school was Aoba International. I learned that “Aoba” means a tiny green leaf that is just shooting up from the food source and into the sky. This website is dedicated to all of the “aobas” out there, seeking to be grounded and growing intellectually, physically, emotionally and spiritually. The theme of the website is “Finding Joy in the Journey” of life, which is not always so easy to do nowadays.

I’ve been through it, as a single mom to two boys: one that has found family and success, and one that struggles. I once called a district attorney’s office here in Texas in an attempt to consolidate and organize my sons’ fines and offenses. Right before we hung up, I asked the lady casually, “By the way, do you have the phone numbers for the DA’s offices in Brazos, Montgomery, Harris and Brazoria Counties? The lady gasped and asked, “Are they in trouble in ALL OF THOSE COUNTIES as well?” My answer just blurted out, “Well, I have TWO sons!”

There’s no judgement here. It is what it is. It’s a difficult time to be rearing children by ourselves, and we are MANY! Let’s grow and laugh and learn together and, as we say in Texas, “get on down the road” to living well. We can DO this together! YOU are my nation! Hopefully my writing will interest you and you will be able to avoid some of the grievous mistakes that I made rearing sons by myself, in the absence of a father, and in the presence of a family with addiction tendencies and attendance in a church with a married youth pastor that had kids and molested little boys. When consequences come to all that bad behavior, guess who gets blamed for it? Mom, of course. I got your back! Read on……………..”