Be a Plodder

(Republished. Originally shared in January, 2016) The other day I was listening to a podcast about home education, a decision in life which requires more than a little long-term perspective. The guest, who had herself raised and educated six children at home, attributed much of her success to being a “plodder.” She said one of … Continue reading Be a Plodder

Imagining for Others: Steinbeck’s East of Eden

I spent most of the last summer with the Trasks and the Hamiltons. East of Eden, John Steinbeck’s masterwork of four-hundred-plus pages had long been on my to-read list, and with the help of my book club, I finally got through it. Steinbeck himself considered it his finest novel; after finishing it, he said “I … Continue reading Imagining for Others: Steinbeck’s East of Eden

Cosmo Kramer, Nine Months Along

(This was originally published ten years ago on my "mommy blog" -- remember those? I thought I'd revive it in honor of the child in question's eighteenth birthday.) Today is my third son's eighth birthday. He would have been an April baby if everything had gone according to plan. But, as these things often do, … Continue reading Cosmo Kramer, Nine Months Along