Stories Told. Lives Changed.
If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment.–Marcus Aurelius I saw my neurologist today. After reviewing a recent MRI of my brain, he informed me that the deterioration that plagued […]
This week marks two years of showing up, sitting down and writing–everyday. Some days I pumped out thousands of words. On others, I farted a few foul sentences and went about my day. But such is the writing life. When I first committed to writing, I held a secret position that green writers often hold– […]
Once you’re alive, can you ever really be dead? Candy Land is a personal narrative written by one of my students, Kayla Paterson. This story, Kayla intertwines the past and the present to explore the power of life, death memories, and board games. Meet the Writer Kayla Patterson is a 12th grade student at Robbinsville High […]
On Superbowl morning I went to Forest Hills Cemertary wearing my Eagles jersey. It’s February in Philadelphia and it’s cold and raining and my son is standing by my side and we’re looking down at the plaque marking the birth and death of my grandparents. Mike and Doreen. I tell them about how the Eagles […]
When I was a kid my dad use to carry me through the silver turnstiles that guarded the concrete spaceship known as Veterans Stadium so we could watch bad baseball, together. In the mid 1980’s the Phillies were a bad baseball team. So bad that if you went to the supermarket and bought an 8 […]
This week’s post is a slight detour from my month-long research and writing about chronic illness. Next week will be the final installment on chronic illness. Even though Dina, the girl who always wore sleeves, has been a student in my class since September, I really meet her for the first time last week on a […]
The following post is part of the The January Project: Chronic Illness. A month long project where I research and write about chronic illness. The information presented in this project is intended for educational purposes only. I am not a doctor. I am a teacher and writer who, while being afflicted with two chronic illnesses, is trying […]
The following post is part of the The January Project: Chronic Illness. A month long project where I research and write about chronic illness. The information presented in this project is intended for educational purposes only. My hope is to increase awareness to help those living with chronic illness and to offer clarification to anyone […]
Hosting Christmas is often a cinnamon-baked decathlon of stress and anxiety. There’s a million things to do. After work you grind through traffic to Target. You park miles away. You hustle across a frozen parking lot. You stop to catch your breath at the closest shopping cart corral. You promise to stop eating so many […]