I am a writer and high school English teacher at a Catholic, all-girls private school. I began my teaching and writing career over 30 years ago, earning my Ph.D. in English Education from and first teaching at New York University. After I finished my degree work, my husband and I moved to Florida; I have taught at both Nova Southeastern University and The University of Tampa.
I left academia to raise two beautiful daughters and help care for my parents, which is when I turned to blogging to help me process my experiences. I started in 2003 with a LiveJournal entitled "Afternoons with Coffee Spoons" which I eventually translated over to Wordpress. In 2019 I was invited to join "The Gloria Sirens" blog, which gave me space to develop my voice.
Over the past few years, as I have raised teenagers and gone back to teaching, my writing has become more focused on the interplay of the Catholic faith, mystery, and storytelling. This has, in 2025, led me to return to writing exclusively for my own blog where I can more fully explore "Every Grace and Blessing" that God has bestowed upon me and those I love.
I’m thinking about this because I know, this year, a lot of people are in at least psychological, if not physical and/or economic distress. Many are depressed and fearful about the future of the world, our nation, and their families. And I think it’s fitting that I write this on Christmas Day because it is my faith, honestly, that allows me to feel calm in times of global and national upset.
What would I do if I had limitless time, and no fear?
Writing this post two days after Hurricane Milton passed within 50 miles of my home, I am struck by how absolutely exhausted I am. I have done some level of physical activity–putting […]
I have filled and emptied decades of my life, but there are still decades left to unfold.
I can no longer invest time or attention in the products of corporations that have intentionally done potentially irreparable damage to not only my children, but their entire generation.
I made the best choices I could with the resources and knowledge I had at the time.
In my pre-teen Xanadu era, my love for music was unfettered and expansive. I sang all the time, any song I wanted, as loud as I wanted, whenever I wanted. Then something changed.
I love these questions. I love knowing that the kids are really thinking about their faith, about how it fits into the real and fictional parts of the world around them
Today, as this fifth-year-anniversary post publishes and I work, every day, to let go of my need for control over everything and follow God’s lead, I see Him sending me everything from millisecond twitches to slow-motion stage winks.
All I can do is keep the memories of my blossoming years in my heart, and hope for a return of summer.
The Gloria Sirens 