Author: Araceli M. Ream

Over the years, I have broadened my knowledge of music and have enlarged the size of my music library. After listening to many albums repeatedly, and through some suggestions from my sixteen-year-old son, I have compiled a list of ten albums that contain a perfect collection of songs. Thankfully, through the advancement of technology, we have websites such as YouTube and Spotify where it is easy to access almost any music that comes to mind. You will find links to enjoy the albums that I highly recommend, each example listed in chronological order according to release date. “Rumours” by…

“I look to a day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” – Martin Luther King, Jr. Over the history of the United States, people have been judged by appearance, mainly gender and ethnicity. Although life has changed for minorities in America since Martin Luther King, Jr.’s lifetime, there is still a struggle for people who don’t fit society’s standard of what is normal. Autism is a disorder that affects one in sixty-eight children, as stated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2014.​  Apart from…

One of the wonderful things about becoming a parent is the opportunity to walk through each stage of childhood and to use my past experiences as a way to connect with my children. Pregnancy and raising infants seem like such a long time ago, but I tend to look back at that stage the most as my kids approach adulthood. Throughout all of the sleepless nights and all of the mistakes turned into lessons, I had the privilege of being there for them and of bonding with them. Once they reached school age, I was fortunate to teach two of…

As a writer and musician, there have been many times that a particular quote or lyrics from a song have impacted me to the point of changing my mindset about something or of motivating me to try something new. If you asked my family and closest friends, they would all point out the fact that I do not do well with change. However, as I’ve gotten older and have realized how much power I have to make my life, and the lives of others, far better than it would’ve been if I had chosen to stay in my comfort zone,…

As children, fear had a very specific meaning. It signified the imagination and innocence that often led to common fears: the dark, monsters, etc. In adulthood, it became a little more complicated. Fear hid itself under different meanings, lurking around in dark corners of the mind, bring doubts and other negative aspects to a life that could otherwise be thriving and be full of positivity. The word “fear” can hold many definitions as listed on merriam-webster.com: 1. To be afraid of (something or someone) 2. To expect or worry about (something bad or unpleasant) 3. To be afraid and worried…

Although my children are all teenagers, and I have never taught any subject other than music, I have always had an interest in history. With the successful opening of the Broadway musical, Hamilton, the soundtrack discovered by one of my sons and shared with the rest of the family, I have started to refresh my knowledge of American history. Below are a few ideas for teaching your children about the history of this nation that will be enjoyable for any age group. American currency. I am embarrassed to admit that when I first had this discussion with my children, I…

It seems to be an underlying theme in nature. Every living thing has a purpose. Even animals, such as the dog Max, the main character in a film of the same name, can lose their passion for life without having a purpose. Without his handler, the German shepherd, trained to work with Marines in combat, exhibited signs of post traumatic stress disorder and was considered too hopeless to rehabilitate. Many people, like myself, have to be passionate about something or someone in order to feel connected and to feel validated in life. There is even the extreme in my disposition…

As young children, the world was a new place to discover: books to read, woods to explore, friends to meet… It seemed there was no limit to the treasures we could find if we just knew where to look. Then somewhere along the way, our eyes were turned elsewhere: to the less-appealing parts of life that accompany us as we grow up. There was this new thing called “stress” that took over our lives and magnified the difficulties we faced in school, at work, and even sometimes in relationships. The magic of the world became hidden to us… until the…

Growing up female in a western society is toxic. One would assume that because I came from an immigrant family where both of my parents, raised in poor families, never put the focus on appearance, or that, to this day, I have never heard my mom complain about any flaws on her face or on her body, for as long as I can remember, I have hated my physical appearance. Although I was slender until the past few years, I always found something to dislike. Recently, I entered my forties and experienced a change in my weight and body type.…

There I was, suffering through another kung fu film. The things we do for love, right? I hadn’t been aware that marrying into another Filipino family included going along with an obsession of kung fu films (especially those which were dubbed over in English by cheesy actors), something the five brothers had shared since childhood. At that time, I already had three children, and I mistakenly figured I was proud of my culture. I had grown up eating Filipino cuisine, being able to understand my parents and grandparents as they spoke in Tagalog (something many other Filipino-American children couldn’t do),…