Blog
“It’s as though I were living at last in my eyes, as I have always dreamed of doing, and I think then I know why I’ve come here: to see, and so to go out against new things—oh god how easily—like air in a breeze. It’s true there are moments—foolish moments, ecstasy on a tree stump—when I’m all but gone, scattered I like to think like seed…”
William Gass, In the Heart of the Heart of the Country
(Photo: Brad Ewell)
Worker Bee Farm
Farmer Will told me that his farm is where farmers go to get their produce.
What is a Mother? Or Who? Or How? Guest Blog Post by Shannon Quist
I have to remind myself that I’m the expert on my lived experience, but as far as having a mother, being mothered, being a mother, I have to be honest: I’ve been in the weeds on this for a long time, and though I’ve grown taller, this is a place I’ve not yet conquered.
The Story under the Story
The walls in our house were made of horsehair plaster, and as I scraped away the thin flowered paper that had basically become skin to the wall, I found pink dust. So I scraped more, searching for story.
Inflammatory Advice to Adoptive Parents--or Thank God No One Told My Parents This Because Part of Me is Still Chicken
I had a trick for when I felt overwhelmed as a kid and couldn’t do my homework for all the upset that was spinning in my head. I’d smash my right hand against the edge of the piano
To Love Your Teacher is a Marvelous Thing
Once Ehud called me on the phone and asked if I could get him some pot.
Adoption, Dreams, Food, and Money
Dreamwriting. It’s okay to not always make sense when you aren’t sure what you want to say—at least it is okay in my world. The trick as a reader is to look at the space between words, between sentences, between paragraphs, and listen for what is missing and then make up a story of your own.
Creativity, Curiosity, and the Internal Compass
It’s not nothing to feel that you are floating through life. It’s not nothing to fear having dreams because the sense of inevitable disappointment is powerfully strong. It’s not nothing to feel unmoored, unknown, unsafe.
Does Adoption Affect a Person's Internal Compass?
I used to think I had a broken internal compass. I made up a story that my mother had dropped me on my head when I was young when people teased me for going the wrong way.
How I Often Eat Three Loaves of Bread a Week and Stay Fairly Skinny--A Love Song about Wild Flour Bread
I’ll wait for some things: the mail, the weather to clear, my nail polish to chip, but when it comes to warm scones, bread and hot espresso, uh huh. No thank you.
Guest Blog Post -- Mel Toth -- Where She Tells You About Our Italy Retreat
This time, I want the memories I carry to be more precise. During the next span of time between myself and Italy, I want to feast on and savor the details of how I spent my time there. I want to bring home more than a few tasty treats and the disjointed thoughts of a gratitude journal. This time, I want to bring home an artifact crafted by my own hands from the raw beauty of my Italian adventure.