A Life in Letters — A Column By Jamie Hughes

October 5, 2018October 15, 2018

What the World Needs Now is Books

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

After reading more than a few articles about how social media demolishes our attention span, prevents us from forming healthy real-world relationships, and causes higher-than-normal rates ... Read more

September 21, 2018September 27, 2018

What the Scan Said (and What It Didn’t)

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

A couple weeks ago, I went to my neurologist’s office early for my annual MRI. It’s never a pleasant experience. Even after 14 years, it’s still ... Read more

September 7, 2018September 12, 2018

What Happened in Vegas

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

This past weekend was a busy one. My husband and I flew to Las Vegas on Saturday morning, saw a concert there Saturday night, and then ... Read more

August 24, 2018August 28, 2018

H2Oh! Water Is a Brain Fuel

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Aug. 1 was a busy day around our house. Backpacks needed to be loaded up, breakfasts consumed, pictures taken, and shoes tied tightly before the bus arrived. ... Read more

August 10, 2018August 14, 2018

I’m Using My Status to Speak Up

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I’ve been thinking a lot about privilege in recent months — what it enables as well as what it prevents. Those who benefit from it may ... Read more

July 27, 2018August 1, 2018

What Are You Living For?

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Maybe it’s because I’ve been listening to too much Jackson Browne lately, but I’m distressed by the state of the world these days. And it’s not ... Read more

July 13, 2018July 19, 2018

Giving Your Brain a Good Stretch

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I turned 40 this year, and it seemed like a mighty fine time to stop and take stock. After all, I’m at the midway point, and ... Read more

June 29, 2018July 4, 2018

Personality Test, Smershonality Test

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Recently, I was required to take a “quick” 100-question test to determine what my Enneagram number is. (I’m a 5, in case you’re curious.) These questions ... Read more

June 15, 2018June 13, 2018

Mind Your Mind

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I don’t know about you, but oftentimes my thoughts are as unruly and irrepressible as Mickey’s broomsticks in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.” Whether I’m worried about the ... Read more

June 1, 2018June 26, 2018

How Dare You?

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

If you read my last column, you’re well aware that there has been some drama around Casa de Hughes over the last few weeks. I can ... Read more

May 18, 2018May 18, 2018

When the Bomb Goes Off

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

It’s easy to be lulled into a false sense of security, to think you’re the supreme authority in your life. And when that ersatz truth is ... Read more

May 4, 2018May 4, 2018

I Am So Much More than My MS

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Every personality test and trait indicator quiz I take tells me the same thing: I’m a polymath. Basically, it’s a fancy Greek word meaning “a person ... Read more

April 20, 2018April 20, 2018

A Look Around the Terminal

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

It’s spring — at least, it’s supposed to be — so getting stuck at the airport due to snow was the last thing I expected during ... Read more

April 6, 2018April 5, 2018

You Only Think You Know

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

When I tell people I have multiple sclerosis, I usually get one of three responses: • “Oh, no! I feel so bad for you!” (Pity) • ... Read more

March 16, 2018March 15, 2018

Just Do It

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Mary Schmich, a columnist for the Chicago Tribune, wrote a 1997 essay aimed at graduates. In it, she shared many practical nuggets of wisdom such as “Floss,” ... Read more

March 2, 2018March 2, 2018

Up with the Volume, Down with the Noise

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “There is more to life than increasing its speed.” That’s not a lesson modern American culture has taken to heart, is it? ... Read more

February 2, 2018February 1, 2018

Rest on the Water: A Flirtation with Flotation to Find Silence

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I’m currently working on an essay about the power of silence. And, in the process of planning this thing, I realized I don’t do so well ... Read more

January 19, 2018January 19, 2018

Chicken Soup Has Super Powers

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Get plenty of rest. Drink lots of warm fluids. Use a humidifier. Gargle and flush your sinuses with warm salt water. Blow your nose early and ... Read more

January 5, 2018January 4, 2018

We Are Streams that Sing

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Wendell Berry, a novelist, poet, farmer and environmental activist, has written a number of superb books. Don’t believe me? Go read “Jayber Crow” and shoot me ... Read more

December 15, 2017December 15, 2017

The Greatest Gifts

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Christmas is just around the corner, and that’s why many people are on the fruitless quest for Fingerlings or hocking an organ to buy the new ... Read more

December 1, 2017December 1, 2017

Holding ‘Space’ for Others

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

  When a friend or loved one is going through a tough time, it’s hard to know how best to help. Do you help carry the ... Read more

November 17, 2017November 17, 2017

Don’t Be a Turkey

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Because I come from a retail family — one that, for decades, put in long hours behind cash registers and in stock rooms — Christmas is ... Read more

October 27, 2017October 26, 2017

Meowmaste: Finding a Spark Inside Myself

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

“We don’t say the ‘D word’ here,” our instructor said. “Just for tonight, let’s all get into downward-facing cat.” The yoga pose wasn’t one I was ... Read more

October 13, 2017October 13, 2017

Life’s Too Short

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Both of my sons — and, if I’m being honest, my husband — love Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. Yes, that horrid stuff that comes in a ... Read more

September 29, 2017October 2, 2017

Shanah Tovah: Celebrating Each Year of Your MS Journey

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I became a Christian when I was 8, and though I’ve wrestled with my faith at various points in my life, I’ve never once doubted my ... Read more

September 15, 2017September 14, 2017

This Too Shall Pass

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I posted this meme on social media last week with the caption “Current Life Status,” hoping a laugh might help matters. I’m sorry to say things didn’t improve ... Read more

August 25, 2017August 27, 2017

Exploring Systems Beneath the Streets, Beneath the Skin

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Our bodies are amazing creations, lovingly handcrafted by an infinitely powerful and creative God, and I never get tired of learning facts about how they work. ... Read more

August 11, 2017August 10, 2017

Cover to Cover, Books of All Kinds Can Lift Your Life

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

In “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft,” as excellent a book about wordcraft as has ever been set to paper, Stephen King says, “Books are ... Read more

July 28, 2017July 28, 2017

Sharpen Your Sense of Joy

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Believe it or not, summer is nearing its end, and a new school year is upon us. I don’t know about you all, but I loved ... Read more

July 14, 2017July 14, 2017

What’s Your Strength?

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I have a co-worker who can meet someone and 10 minutes later know their life’s story. Heck, she even bonded with a woman who rear-ended her ... Read more

June 30, 2017June 30, 2017

Go, Go Avocado!

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

I don’t normally go in for trends. For example, I don’t own a single pair of skinny jeans. I’ve never tried a Unicorn Frappuccino. I’m not ... Read more

June 16, 2017June 15, 2017

All the Power You Possess: How ‘Wonder Woman’ Reminds Us Who We Are

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Like millions of other fans, I happily plunked down $13 to launch “Wonder Woman” into blockbuster status on its opening weekend. In fact, I was so ... Read more

June 2, 2017June 2, 2017

One Man’s Playground is Another Man’s Horror

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Multiple sclerosis has a way of messing with one’s head. Whether it’s emotional or psychiatric disorders, fatigue, brain fog, or physical problems, there’s a lot to ... Read more

May 15, 2017May 15, 2017

Make Some Noise: The Importance of Concerts

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Pull up a chair, kiddos, and I’ll tell you a sad story. Because we’re both musicians, my husband and I love going to concerts together. We’re ... Read more

May 8, 2017May 10, 2017

Look What the Cat Dragged In!

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Like one third of America, I’m a cat lover. I’ve had kitties in my house since I was a child, often in sets. Currently, I’m the ... Read more

April 26, 2017April 26, 2017

39 Years and Counting — on at Least 39 More Great Ones

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Last week, I celebrated by 39th birthday. Yes, 39. That’s one year shy of the big 4-0. The last year of my 30s. If life was ... Read more

April 12, 2017April 12, 2017

Spring is an Apt Time to Reflect on MS and Hope

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

T.S. Eliot’s opens his masterwork The Waste Land with four stunning lines of verse: April is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, ... Read more

March 31, 2017March 31, 2017

A Word, If You Please

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

Thirteen years ago, a neurologist sat on the edge of my hospital bed and told me, “You have MS. It’s not the end of the world. ... Read more

March 17, 2017March 20, 2017

MS Awareness Month: Which Ribbon Are We Again?

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month. That means we need to make the most of these four weeks to raise some money for research, and raise awareness ... Read more

March 3, 2017March 3, 2017

Play On: What Baseball Has Taught Me About MS

A Life in Letters -- A Column By Jamie Hughes, Columns

When people ask me what I love, I usually respond, “God, my family, and St. Louis Cardinals baseball … in that order.” Other than the Razorbacks, ... Read more