This post was written by Rachel Adkins who is a Black woman. Because I am a white woman with predominantly white readers in this platform, I asked Rachel if she would be willing to allow me to share her voice with you all as an attempt for me to "pass the mic" and amplify her... Continue Reading →
Ilhan Omar Deserves a Second Term
I'll be the first one to tell you I have had a hard life. A brief summary: I lived in 30 different homes throughout my childhood, my parents divorced and fought an ugly custody battle that ultimately awarded 100% custody to my dad due to my mom being deemed "unfit" when I was in my... Continue Reading →
We Won’t Be Able to Blame Ignorance Much Longer
So much of who I am as a human being is this belief I have that I am to meet people where they are at, and inspire them to grow from that point. I do this with my students, with the teachers I coach, with the strangers I talk to in the grocery store, and... Continue Reading →
Introducing Kids to Race and Bias
When I think about the books I read as a kid, some of the classics come to mind. There was a lot of Dr. Seuss, Berenstain Bears, Junie B. Jones, Baby Sitters’ Club, Magic Tree House, etc. I saw a lot of examples of girls who looked and thought like me in the books I... Continue Reading →
Minneapolis Artists Who Inspire Me
Support local artists! You make a difference.
family tree poem
when i look at our family tree, it seems safe to say that the only similarity i am confident of is this: generation after generation, our tears are in the same language.
2019: Here’s What I Read This Year
I read 30 books in 2019! And I'm pretty proud of that. Here are some noticings about all the books I read: I read 3 graphic novels, 8 fiction novels, 16 non-fiction works, and 3 books of poetry. 25 of the 30 books were written by women and/or non binary folks. 16 of the 30... Continue Reading →
Read with Me in 2019: Books 26-30!
As I typed out the title for this, I just realized this is it. This is the last one for 2019. And honestly, I'm pretty proud of 30 books in one year. I didn't set out to read a certain number, although I maybe would have preferred 50, but 30 is pretty good. I read... Continue Reading →
It’s (Not) the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
For some, including me, the end of the calendar year brings a lot of reminders of how much pain we're experiencing. Gathering with family can reopen a lot of old wounds. Not gathering with family can cause heartache too. The list of reasons to be grieving is long... I could sense in myself the dread... Continue Reading →
There is Evidence of Living All Over My Living Room
I sort of joke now about how my step-mom kept our house like a model home. On any given day, it could have been put on the market and shown to potential buyers. Everything was surface-level clean... except the kids' rooms. When I started dating Ben in tenth grade, I was so surprised by the... Continue Reading →