The ordinary world has shifted since I was young in the MiddleWest. I know. Newsflash. Roles of Ordinary Young Women Changed Over Time For real, the role of writers, teachers, parents and even common roles like, “mom,” flipped when I wasn’t looking. Yesterday, as an eager college student, I thought not of staying home and raising kids, but of working in an office where I had my own desk and
Pardon Me: Thoughts on Public Manners
It occurred to me recently that public manners have become the socially unacceptable thing to expect. Gone are the days when people listened to one another with their full frontal attention. Yesterday’s attentive and thoughtful listener is drowned out in a tsunami of device screen lights. Children who once were chastised for inattention at church or other public gatherings are no longer held in check by expectations of any polite
Podcast Playlists for You: Summer Listening
It’s summertime and you long for ways to spend time, but not money. Me too! I am always looking to feel like I’m could treat myself. Even though I’m pretty simple person, I do know a good value. The current trend is tuning into podcasts. And I thought I’d share some favorites with you. Podcasts For Personal Growth As you might imagine, you and I are not so different. How
Unexpected Artistry Refreshes the Soul
Just another Sunday in the MiddleWest.
Edit: Word of the Year and How it is Editing My Life
Lately I’ve been feeling as though the Lord has something exciting for me. In January, I chose the word edit for my word of the year. And it seems to be fairly prophetic in several areas. Editing Sparks Joy My classroom received the Marie Kondo editing treatment. Anything that did not spark joy or serve a purpose for my students, had proved useless or was a one time wonder
Heartland, Paradox, and Raw Truths
After reading, Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth by Sarah Smarsh, I have been wondering whether we could be related. Probably not related by blood, but she sure seems familiar. Truly, sometimes, she was my next-county-over neighbor. Though we never met, and we’re not blood kin, she’s my heartland people. Smarsh’s Heartland narrative is achingly familiar, sincerely drawn with a clear,
No Bells, Cool Things, and Free Range Learning
Bells: Begin. Move. Warning. Penalty. Time’s Up. End. Repeat. According to the theory of learning noted by Frank Smith’s The Book of Learning and Forgetting (BLF), students attend schools that divide them into age segregated classes and then inserts the students into disconnected pockets of instruction. Giving the students a rich and comprehensive education is increasingly difficult because the system stifles connections. Now, in isolation and bell driven days, no