My oldest sister, Kendra, was the jokester in the family. She always made everyone laugh. She was an Aries, a fire sign like me, and was naturally stubborn and bull-headed. But that wasn’t always a bad thing. She had a strong personality and a lively spirit. I never thought that I would have to be in this world without her, not for a long time. Yet her life was cut …Read More >
The InStepp Blog: Our Perspective
Visit the InStepp Blog often to get our perspective on issues and local events. Our bloggers continually scan the internet looking for news, ideas and other information of potential interest to our readers.
The Complexities of Triumph
Students sometimes ask me if my Ph.D. was “worth it”—the financial, psychological, and physical sacrifices I made to earn it. For years, I answered honestly with, “It depends on the day.” Over the past year and a half, however, as I have settled in a new place and taken on a new position, I feel lucky to be able to more often offer a confident “yes.” Still, I remain aware …Read More >
A Grandmother’s Love
Sadie. Mom Mom. The person I was named after and the best grandmother I could ever ask for. She was born on the 4th of July, and it set the tone for her whole life: independent. I can still see her yellow hands, bulging with blue and green veins from years of hard work. Wrinkled and soft. She was a little lady with a big heart, and she was love.In the summer that I …Read More >
Mixtape
Track 1: “Where Does the Good Go” by Tegan and SaraOn a long, broken road to Nova Scotia, my soon-to-be-fiancé and I listen to songs I haven’t heard in years and, in some cases, had forgotten even existed. The songs, hidden in mix CDs that my former “person” and I had compiled implicitly speak to the lives we embodied during each season of each year of our friendship. …Read More >
A Decade Later: My Tribute to Michael Jackson
Halloween is coming soon. It seems like as soon as September gets here, everyone pulls out their Halloween decorations. Up until last year, I didn’t celebrate. It just wasn’t my thing. I never liked doing what everyone else was doing anyway. Of course I watched a few of the movies. Hocus Pocus is always a given. However, there was one thing that I did every year on …Read More >
A Season for Everything
King Solomon said that there is a season for everything. A season of love, pain, joy, sorrow. A time to sow and a time to reap. A time to work and a time to rest.Which season are you in? A season of loss, pain, loneliness? Have hope and be encouraged! Life is full of uncomfortable and daunting transitions that we must learn to deal with. Take this time to heal, to grow …Read More >