This post has been a long time coming. I began thinking about writing it back in August, when Michael Brown’s killing in Feguson first hit the news, well before yesterday’s announcement that Eric Garner’s killer would not be charged with any crime. This post is about me, an average middle-aged white woman who grew up … Continue reading What an Average White Person Like Me Can Do About Racism
As 2013 was winding down, I found myself more and more contemplating the state of worry I seem to usually find myself in. If I strung together all the minutes I spent worrying, how many days have I lost? I suspect the answer is in weeks, if not months. And what has this time spent … Continue reading Thoughts on Worry and Purpose
Yes, you read that correctly. Facebook--that insidious thief of creative energy--has made me a better writer. I kid you not. I was invited to join Facebook back in 2009 by a good friend who lives in another state. Cool, I thought, this will help us keep in touch. For a long time, that was the only useful purpose … Continue reading How Facebook Has Helped Me Become A Better Writer
This is a book I've been wanting to read for quite a long time. I loved Shapiro's first memoir, Slow Motion, and I also love her blog, Moments of Being. Devotion chronicles a spiritual journey, but not the kind I was expecting. There's nothing artificial about her exploration of the Judaism she grew up with or … Continue reading Book a Week: Devotion, by Dani Shapiro
I've begun a new habit of reading poetry each morning before I begin to write. At the moment, I'm working through the seventh edition of Contemporary American Poetry, edited by A. Poulin, Jr. and Michael Waters. I'm doing this to educate myself, but I'm also doing this to inspire my writing every day. Once upon a … Continue reading Solidarity
Karen Pickell: Between 