Randi Becker Walls

I grew up in Chicago, but traveled constantly throughout my formative years between the cities of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Chicago. I am an adult child of divorce, a divorced and remarried adult, and I have been a single parent (which includes, but is not limited to, Cub Scout den mother and "soccer mom"). I graduated from Senn High School in Chicago in 1967, and earned my bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Cincinnati by 1976. As a child, I was no stranger to the rigors of the court and social service systems. My young life was spent changing schools, neighborhoods, cities, and even families. I have experienced emotional and physical abuse. Although I now carry the scars of these experiences and deal with my emotional issues on a regular basis, I have survived - oh, yes! You see,life has also provided me with love and positive experiences, living it as a "Baby Boomer" in this great country through the '50s,'60s, '70s and beyond. I have chosen to gather it all together in this book, the metaphor for which is a beautiful glass mosaic sculpture. I am an artist as well as a retired school psychologist, enjoy writing, acting/performing in theatre, and most of all, loving my grandchildren and stepchildren and finding some sense of repletion and closure with respect to my own dysfunctional young life as I observe their successful nuclear families that work. Although it is often very difficult for me, I try to remember and follow my father's advice to "play percentage" and don't give up on life, as you don't know what lies ahead. And what my grandfather's old business card says to do: "When troubles come don't lose your head, fold your arms and smile instead."