Candelaria Silva

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  1. Paying It Backwards

    4/27/11 4:10pm by Candelaria Silva
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    Helping hands

    We often hear the phrase pay it forward. You do something good for someone, usually a stranger, as part of a chain of positive action. You pay forward because you often can’t pay back the particular person who did you a good deed. I recently have had an experience which allowed me to pay it backwards. I was able to return a favor to a friend who was very good to me when I was in college. She took me in when I had nowhere to go. She gave me food when I was hungry.  Read more >

  2. My Friend but Not My Girl -- Intergenerational Friendships

    4/6/11 10:00am by Candelaria Silva
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    Intergenerational Friends

    I’ve been thinking about intergenerational friendships in recent weeks, specifically about the nature of such friendships. Over the past three months, I have learned that despite what I thought was a seamless closeness with friends several years my junior, there were in fact boundaries to the depth of our friendships on their part. I am their friend -- yes -- but I am not now, nor will I ever be “their girl.” Perhaps this is as it should be, but it is a bit dismaying nonetheless.  Read more >

  3. What Comes Around Goes Around

    1/29/11 4:00pm by Candelaria Silva
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    What Goes Around

    As I’ve accumulated experience and some wisdom garnered through living life, one of the things that has happened is that I have learned that many clichés are based in truth. A cliché that has shown itself to be true a lot in the fifth decade of my life is that what goes around comes around.  Read more >

  4. Gift Resolution: Start Working Now on These Great Gift Ideas

    1/3/11 6:18pm by Candelaria Silva
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    Friends Talking

    Have you had Christmases where you found yourself low on time, money or inspiration when giving holiday gifts to loved ones. At this point in my life, I’ve given my children and other family members all sorts of gifts. While all of them were appreciated, not all of them were meaningful. Next year, I want to do something different.  Read more >

  5. Do You Attend Funerals?

    11/27/10 9:00am by Candelaria Silva
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    With her Headstone

    Growing up, I attended all funerals held at the Baptist church that I grew up in.  As a result, I am comfortable attending funeral services. I have friends who do not attend funerals.  One friend swears that the only funeral she will attend will be her own, and she’ll skip that one by leaving clear instructions that she does not want a service. In midlife, the occasions to attend funerals accelerate.   Read more >

  6. Queen of Comedy Moms Mabley: Cougar on Stage, Lion in Life

    10/31/10 7:29pm by Candelaria Silva
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    Moms Mabley (screen grab)

    The recent appearance of Terry McMillan and her ex Jonathan on the Oprah Show, as well as the break-up of the marriage of Courteney Cox and David Arquette, got me remembering an original "cougar" -- at least in her comedy routine: Jackie “Moms” Mabley (1894-1975).  Read more >

  7. Stop Looking Back

    10/5/10 9:00am by Candelaria Silva
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    Woman Looking Over Shoulder

    A few years ago I started having dreams that were essentially flashbacks of some negative experiences I’d had in my life with my first husband (deceased) and another guy I’d planned to marry.  These dreams caused me daytime grief, regret and chagrin.  Read more >

  8. I’ll Have a “Singapore Sling” and Other Drinks from Back in the Day

    9/20/10 1:00pm by Candelaria Silva
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    Singapore Sling

    Kevin Sbraga, the winner of Top Chef, D.C.,  prepared a Singapore Sling re-imagined for 2010 as the dessert of his winning menu.  I hadn’t heard the name Singapore Sling in ages.  That got me thinking of popular drinks from back in my girlish days.  (I don’t drink, so I can’t speak with personal knowledge about how these drinks tasted.  My husband, who does drink and whose father was a bartender, helped me brainstorm a list.)  Read more >

  9. How Long Will You Work?

    9/13/10 9:11am by Candelaria Silva
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    Older Woman Working

    How long will you work?  When will you retire?  Will you ever retire?  For many of us, whether and how long we work will be determined by finances.  For others of us, working beyond retirement is something we choose because we find work fulfilling. People work far beyond retirement age – some for their entire lives – for many reasons.    Read more >

  10. Review: "Don't Bring Home a White Boy"

    9/8/10 10:04am by Candelaria Silva
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    Don't Bring Home a White Boy Cover

    I’ve recently had conversations with four of my friends about the lack of dates, mates or love in their lives. They are attractive, educated, active and fun.  Three are well-traveled.  They are heterosexual.  They are black (as in African-American).  They range in age from mid-twenties to sixty.  (The 60 year old friend was featured in Essence a few years back because of her fitness and active lifestyle.)  In each conversation, the idea of dating outside the race has come up.  It is an idea they consider but most have not practiced.  Read more >

Candelaria Silva-Collins

Full Name
Candelaria Silva-Collins
Member Since
February 2008
About Me: 

Writer, facilitator, researcher, coach, avid reader, enjoyer of life, opinionated about everything.  Love to dance, cook, walk, break bread with friends.  Hoping the world lives long enough to heal.

Location Tags: 

Boston, St. Louis, Charlotte

Employers: 

Self-employed, self-directed

School Tags: 

Goddard College (ADP-1981) Attended Northeastern University.

About Me Tags: 

relationships,the world around me,social justice issues,things that strike my fancy

Causes Tags: 

education,equal opportunity and access,the environment,nonviolence

Favorite Tags: 

great food,sex,walking,friendship,movies,books,laughter,dance,music

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