Athena's Head

Lilacs for My Mother

Martha @ Athena's Head — Mon, 06 May 2013 17:40:09 +0000

My mother the artist taught me to attend to beauty that means no more than itself. When I try to describe the maroon-tinged stargazer lilies in the vase beside her bed before she died, maybe words are hopeless. Maybe not. We positioned the vase so she could see it, though by then, her last week, I don’t think she could make sense of anything. Continue reading →

Boston Lockdown

Martha @ Athena's Head — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 18:08:48 +0000

Friday, April 19, Cambridge, Mass. This morning, I awoke to my nervous son, holding out the phone. It was the head of his school, calling to let us know that the last day of vacation camp had been canceled … Continue reading →

Boston: Did I Say Too Much?

Martha @ Athena's Head — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 16:21:31 +0000

I’m still wondering if it was wrong for my son to find out just as I was finding out, my response unprocessed and far from a “teachable moment.” Continue reading →

Review of “The Mothers” on CSM

Martha @ Athena's Head — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 17:11:52 +0000

I’m now a guest blogger at the Christian Science Monitor‘s “Modern Parenthood” blog. You can read my review of Jennifer Gilmore’s latest novel on the CSM site: “Jennifer Gilmore’s ‘The Mothers’: An honest adoption novel” by Martha Nichols In the … Continue reading →

Taylor Swift, Feminist

Martha @ Athena's Head — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 17:42:07 +0000

The current mean-spiritedness displayed by popular culture, especially woman-on-woman meanness, is very much a feminist issue. Continue reading →