“Is Harper….sensitive?” This question came from a well-meaning, good person, who I know meant no harm, but I also know from the way she said “sensitive” – a slight grimace to the face, a shrug of the shoulder, a twist of the body towards mine, like a nudge, nudge, you-know-what-I’m-talkin’-’bout-Willis- that this trait is thought of as negative. Sensitive folk… View Post

My favorite day this year with Hadley went like this: She had an evening swim practice at the same time Harper had her last baseball game. I went to the swim practice, and Jesse went to the baseball game. We would meet up later at Dairy Queen to celebrate Harper’s teams’ season with ice-cream cones and Blizzards. Hadley ran ahead… View Post

It’s dark at 7am these mornings, and it’ll only grow darker. Soon, I won’t drive right towards the sun because the sun won’t be up; I’ll probably get to work faster because its light won’t be in my way. I am sitting at the kitchen when Jesse comes in and says, “Smells good in here,” and walks towards me to… View Post

This is a piece I wrote for the Ypsilanti Community School newsletter the librarians put together once a month.  The week before summer vacation ended, I was sitting in Zingerman’s Coffeehouse, one hand around a mug of freshly poured coffee, and another on a cover of a book called June Sparrow and the Million Dollar Penny by Rebecca Chase. My daughters,… View Post

“But I can’t write poetry!” you tell me. I know, I know, you sweet thing. Me neither. Let’s just you and I talk about the greatest season of all time: fall. Some call it autumn. Tell me about what you notice when autumn happens. You know, leaves turning into fire, football games, air so crisp and clear like the first… View Post