Honoring the journey—then and now
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Searching, again
“Who are you?” an elderly woman demands as she peers up into my face. I have never met her. A middle-aged man shrugs apologetically, “I should know you, but I forget your name.” I’ve never met him, either. Barely making eye contact, a young person nods at me and shoves a folded paper my way,…
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Where has all the passion gone?
“Not everyone thinks the way you do,” a friend and coworker once told me. I suppose it was meant to rein in my higher-than-average expectations of myself and others. But as I think about how doomscrolling, social media, and AI are infiltrating, perhaps hijacking, the lives of young people today, I can’t help but think…
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Blue ripples
Fill the Aegean Blue ripples shimmering with silver ridges, rolling away toward the Sun that brightens the palest azure horizon mesmerize me. My exposed skin browns with freckles, moistened by the late summer rays that burn in the cerulean sky. Those Aegean sailors bound for Troy, fiercely loyal or stupidly tricked by a sailor much…
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What’s in my bouquet of beliefs?
I hope my students never fully know. My bouquet of beliefs may set on my teacher’s desk, for all to notice, in front of where I plan my lessons and confer with scholars, where it brightens my day and eases my stress with the beauty of its unique blossoms and verdure. But it is not…
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It’s the pronouns, again.
Our identities are being taken away, one pronoun at a time. I’m not talking about the gender-based pronouns. During the last few years in the classroom, I just stopped using gender-based personal pronouns for fear of getting them wrong. I resorted to first names when I could remember the new ones, or just “you” as…
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Time to percolate
It’s rare to find a person this time of year who doesn’t enjoy a tall cup of pumpkin spice latte. That rich flavor and aroma are quintessentially fall. Does it matter how it was prepared? French-pressed? Cold Brewed? Maybe poured over for a quick decaf? I love a good cup of coffee regardless of how…
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Will just being just happen?
“Do your best. Keep trying until you can do no more. Did you do your best? Then that’s all you can do.” ~Sigh~ The words do more than echo. They are the threads that stitch together my daily life. But I’m getting better at asking for help. Covid did that: Made me stress more, doubt…
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The way will open
Ants have been harassing me. For a week or so before our big trip west, a couple of times when I sat on the couch in the evenings, I felt a little tickle on my arm or leg. When I glanced down, I saw a big, fat black carpenter ant moseying along my bare skin.…
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Oh, California!
Politics, health care, or sanctuary. Wide open deserts where no one will impede on personal choices, potential opportunities that hint at millions, or family reunions– even weddings! People have flocked to sunny California for countless reasons. One of the most compelling reasons to return to California is its gorgeous landscapes. So varied and so magnificent!…
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By plane or by car?
Have you seen X lately? Some people complain about riding in a car on vacation. They groan when they hear about the time it will take to get to where the vacation begins. They’d much rather hop a flight and be at their destination in what seems a trice. I suspect they may be suffering…
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