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Honoring the journey—then and now

  • Things Just Fell Into Place

    It was nothing remarkable that I did. Nothing that I especially deserved. It just happened. That’s how my 3xs great aunt’s diary has become a novel.

  • Phrases Mary Jane uses and I love

    Reviving my Quaker roots “What’s all that dead time during your church service?” my soon-to-be-husband wanted to know. He had managed to slip out after his early morning Methodist service to sit with me during my Quaker meeting for worship.  As a birthright member of The Religious Society of Friends, I knew we had some…

  • How does your personality impact your writing?

    Maybe more than you think! It happened again.  And what a powerful lesson our personalities hold! Every year when introducing my students to the elements of rhetoric, I use the Myers-Briggs Personality Test to make a much larger point, one I hope stays with them for the rest of their lives. About ten years ago…

  • Who doesn't like a survey?

    Helping student writers create their own primary research Are you smart enough to spell these words?  Which Disney princess are you? Are you an official bookworm?  Which flower matches your personality?  Quizzes, questionnaires, and surveys are all the rage for the over-thirty crowd on Facebook. Taking surveys can be loads of fun. Who doesn’t want…

  • Engaging student writers with local history

    A pandemic accomplishment to be proud of The school year always ends on a hectic, almost frantic note for me as I rush around with last-minute tasks. By the time the first day of summer vacation arrives, I revert to being a kid:  I want to toss my spelling book into the campfire, stay up…

  • It’s been a weird Christmas.

    Pushing the pause button It’s been a weird Christmas.  One spent exactly the opposite way I had hoped: home with family. In October– on the 7th actually– once again we broached the topic of canceling our long-anticipated holiday trip with friends to Egypt, Crete, and Israel.   After a few days of ungluing ourselves to the…

Barbara Swander Miller

Honoring the journey in everyday life

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