the simplest way to value your life

Dad is putting up a fence in the backyard. It’s summertime and I’m seven. He leaves a space at the tree so we can still cut through to Missy and Shelly’s. They have a tire swing and a basement. They get the channel with Fraggle Rock and their mom buys pop in cans,...

how to be a better storyteller

They stood on the corner of Elm and McGee, laughing over flirt-heavy secrets and the funny things of nerves or love. Or maybe both. She was dressed for a date — ballet flats, strapless dress, a smile wide enough to connect the mountains to the sea. He had on...

on being an authentic introvert

Last month at (in)courage, I wrote about when you want to be known. After I wrote that post, I’ve thought a lot about the word authenticity. It seems like there are as many definitions of what it means as there are people in the world. I tend to think of it as...

the magic of light

We have a dog who ate the couch so now we have an empty-ish sunroom. He can’t reach the twinkle lights, so even though it’s kind of dorm room-y to nail lights to the walls and probably breaks every real-person decorating rule, I’m keeping them up...