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Sometimes, it so happens that we've paid so much attention to the things in front of us, we've forgotten to look at what is not there. To consider the whole picture, background and foreground, positive and negative space, stuff and emptiness. We need both for the beauty of the picture, for the balance. Yet how difficult to let go of the song in front of us and free fall into the murky nothing. How difficult to forget our name and lose ourselves in the infinite letters. But, is there any other way to understand the shape of things? Spaces i. the trees have strung up our hearts, a thumping, bumping fruit, on this infernal, vernal day with the lavender blooms of mountain laurel, the glory of birdsong, and the earthy taste of greens plucked from the dirt christening our senses, making us forget our sins of winter and believe in a perpetual spring day ii. the birds have been singing outside our window in the light and in the dark they s
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Originality: A Falsehood, A Goal

Originality: A Falsehood, A Goal Or, Everything (Nothing) is Original   There’s a self-aggrandizing belief in all of us that we are original, that we can create something original. “Original” is a little arrogance we indulge ourselves. Every quip we make, face we give, and dance we release has been done before. How many times have I said something I thought was insanely clever, only to hear it uttered by several other women in the weeks after? There is an essential egotistical quality to everything we do- as though we were the first and the last, as though we have done something groundbreaking. What a shallow snorkel into the human mind tells us is that we largely know what we have been exposed to. I am able to repeat something in a particular manner (either verbatim or slightly modified) because I have seen it or heard it before. Yet part of my human egoism is that I claim it in this moment to be mine. To be new. To be brave.   There are some, in our history, who have cont

Things I Read: 2016 Edition

2016 was the year that didn't end for so many reasons. But, it wasn't always all bad! I got a wonderful new job at an educational organization I love, I went on a couple of wonderful trips, and made wonderful memories with family and friends! I also read a bunch of books- some work-related, a lot non-work-related. I review them for you here, mostly for my benefit so that I can actually recall what I read and what I thought about the books.  Happy reading, and here's to many books, adventures, and memories in 2017! Modern Romance- Aziz Ansari  Hilarious and insightful! Ansari puts a comedians twist on a very salient sociological topic! I was impressed by the thorough nature of the research and the relevant conclusions formed. This is a great read for anyone- whether single/married, modern/ancient, in love/burnt out. Wave-  Sonali Deraniyagala   I did not realize this was a true story until the acknowledgment section at the end of the book. The whole time reading

Actions Speak Louder

Was it the echoes of bullets from decades ago on the streets of LA, Selma or Montgomery? Have they traveled so far? Have they pierced the veils of time to hunt us in the present? Bringing strips of cotton stained with blood and woven back together to create a new shroud. Those bullets passed through your stores, your children, your leaders Ricocheted off your disco balls marred the brick of your houses and found you even while protected and protecting. These bullets indiscriminately perforating black and brown bodies leaving a trail of broken hearts, dashed dreams for the future, plastic toys littered through time From what fire was this metal forged? Whose hands reach through the flame now, and What do they seek? Justice? Revenge? Power? To catch a bullet is a tricky thing. Your body may be left in the streets and incite riots or the metal may simply pass through you and into the next dark body. If the metal lingers in the minds of the people Your body

Temporarily (Dis)Abled

Can you walk from the refrigerator to the couch? Can you run (or at least attempt to run) to catch your kids? Can you climb up the stairs to your work or in your home without any difficulty? If so, then you’re likely not one of the 56.7 million functionally disabled persons in the US (also includes hearing/vision loss, dementia, mental health…etc.) I’ve not really questioned my knowledge of disabilities. I trained in a school psychology program focused on social justice and actively take a stance on understanding forms of power, privilege, and oppression wherever they lay, including disabilities. I practice as a school psychologist, helping to identify students with special needs in our schools. Frankly, I thought I "got" it. Just four days ago, I broke my toe (my right, big-toe, to be specific). Fractured. Painful. Swollen. I iced it and elevated it all day when it first happened, but when the swelling didn’t go down the next day, I went to an urgent care clinic