Category Archives: Uncategorized
Family Happiness
Family history, like history itself, is never perfect and is shaped by chance, circumstance, and story. Family history, like history itself, is always a little more complicated than it seems. My father did not want to get married and he … Continue reading
Welcome Happiness
Right now I am happy. And I truly believe that when I feel it, I should say it. It compounds the feeling and makes it twice as strong. Writing it down makes it even stronger. That is why gratitude journals … Continue reading
Schooled in the Greater Good
I’ve got this. You’ve got this. We’ve got this. Parents, teachers, principals, and superintendents conjugate hope, courage, and determination. I’ve got this. You’ve got this. We’ve got this. This has been going on for days and yesterday Virginians found out … Continue reading
Summer’s Lease
I gave the Uber driver the address and as we drove we chatted about his country (Nepal) and the custom of arranged marriages and the movie “Blinded by the Light.” The time flew and before we knew it, he was … Continue reading
A Little Chautauqua
Chautauqua is a lake and a place and an institution. There are brick walkways where streets might have been, but there are no cars in Chautauqua. Along the walkways are front porches with white wicker tables that hold vases full … Continue reading
Begin Here
When I became a teacher, at the age of 22, I knew it was for the long haul. Teaching was how I chose to serve, and I knew it would take a lifetime to develop a practice that would be … Continue reading
Third Grade is Habit Forming
These days it is hard to pick up a magazine or listen to a podcast and not encounter the latest thinking about the oldest trick in the book. Habits. After all, habit formation is the bedrock of cultures that created … Continue reading
Rounding Grief’s Corner
The people at Hospice take grief seriously. Serious grief? It sounds comically and tragically redundant, and I didn’t want any part of it. They told me counseling was offered as a benefit. Grief counseling sounded like being sad on purpose. … Continue reading
A Life Speaks
Barbara Elliott Hopkins (Sparks) August 16, 1928- October 9, 2017 When my mother asked me to write her eulogy she said, “It is going to be hard to try and figure out the words for what I’ve tried to say … Continue reading
Flying Without a Net
Trapeze artists fly through the air with the greatest of ease, but not without a net. No one flies without a net, but it can feel like we do. Teachers are high flying acrobats who fly the highest at the … Continue reading
