Some writers and I discuss point-of-view That is – can you change in the middle of a story? David does it in Psalm 3 He speaks to God directly – “Lord, how my foes increase! “…you Lord, are a shield around me.” Then, David talks to us: “I cry aloud to the Lord, He answers I will not be afraid.”… View Post

I am at a swim meet of Harper’s. It’s called “The Last Chance” meet. This means this is the last chance to make a state cut. Except next week is regionals, and I think you can get a state cut for that, too. Maybe this is a “Second to Last Chance” meet, but that doesn’t roll off the tongue as… View Post

In 2003, I was asked to come back to Covenant Christian School, the first school I taught at, and give a graduation speech. It was a small school – one hallway – and the middle school was just getting started (I got to help start it), so this class was small. Two students: Eddie and Zach. Here is my introduction…. View Post

Mr. Blackburn insisted we write in cursive, and we write the entire word of the month, and not something lazy like 12-21-90. No, no. It was December. It was 1990. Four days before Christmas, on the fourth floor of Oak Park and River Forest High School, Mr. Blackburn asked us to interact with a poem, and here is what I… View Post

My reading schedule for the chapter “Various Tragedies” in Emily of New Moon fell during a time when my town was experiencing one large tragedy, which I am sure was the result of smaller, various tragedies – slits on ice that we all thought was thick enough to withstand – and I was afraid to read it. A girl the… View Post