I assume Gwendolyn Brooks had Black readers primarily in mind when “truth” was published, in 1949... anticipating the tremendous courage that would be needed as the civil rights movement gained momentum. But she could also have been thinking of the ways Whites were in denial and resisted change. Either way, the poem is, sadly, as relevant today as ever.
When I was nine, my grandfather’s elder brother, Itzhak, came for a visit from Caracas. It had been twenty-five years since they had seen each other.
"I need to teach her that it’s OK to fall a lot. It’s the absolute best way to know you’re flying." - Ryan Reynolds
Monks and holy guides of many different faiths agree that each person has their own “grace.” As Thomas Merton writes, “And each way is a grace, a special way is a special grace.”
I wrote the first draft of this poem on January 26, 2025, during a Courage to Teach retreat outside Frederick, Maryland. We had read William Stafford’s “The Way It Is,” and I just couldn’t get it out of my head.
On the mantel above my fireplace sits a representation of Quan Yin. I keep her there where I can always see her, because she embodies my intention and my spiritual practice as a human being and as a writer.
I lived in my suburban townhouse for nine years before I set foot inside a neighbor’s house. I knew their names and enough for a few minutes of small talk, but after that it felt safer to hurry back inside…
My husband and I moved to Vermont, in part, because of our love for the land and farming. We filled our new homestead with native plants to support pollinators. This year, our farmer neighbor decided to plant corn on our border - corn laced with pesticides...
Long ago, I was invited to Thanksgiving dinner in the home of a family with two lovely little girls. Both the meal and the company were excellent. The kids had been excused to go play, and some of the grownups were eying a second piece of pie, when suddenly one of the little girls yelped, ran into the room, and burst into tears.
About tomorrow... Written on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.Today is one of those Big Days. One of those dates that's been stamped out in my future in bright red ink: Tuesday,…