Stories about everything from motherhood, faith, and grief, to classical-Christian education, current events, and the writing life.
A complicated birth, dark intrusive thoughts, and the absence of my mom hurled me into a postpartum furnace — but like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, I was not alone in the fire.
Read moreChicago is my home — not because I was born here, but because it shaped me. At Christmastime, the city glows at least five times brighter, and there is no place I would rather be.
Read moreGoodreads is giving away free copies of my debut book on postpartum depression. Enter for a chance to win.
Read moreAffliction breeds the strongest hope. We may not realize it while stuck in the mire, but it is there we build the strength that will one day bolster others.
Read moreLosing a baby is a tragedy that demands to be addressed. Grief is a lifelong process, but we have an amazing capacity for healing — to get stronger, rebuild, and help others along the way.
Read moreShe was 46. He was 47. They both left the floor before the music stopped — but I dance on, inspired by my mother's resilience and my brother's strong character.
Read moreTen days unplugged in British Columbia reminded me that stepping away from the noise is how we find our way back to the streams of creativity.
Read moreA trip to Philadelphia to promote my book brought me back to the high-intensity rhythm of the East Coast — and to the graves of founding fathers who first pulled mental illness from the fringes.
Read moreWe still treat suicide as a stain on someone's character rather than the public-health crisis it is. Four years after losing my brother, I've learned that talking is our strongest weapon against stigma.
Read moreParenthood is paradox from the beginning — miraculous and grueling. When postpartum illness strikes, story and shared suffering become our most powerful antidotes.
Read moreAfter I told my kids to hitch their wagons to a star, my 5-year-old grabbed a grown-up book on mindful writing and my 8-year-old reached for a tome on Ancient Rome. Maybe Emerson is sinking in.
Read moreExplaining death to my children after losing two friends reminded me that the unnatural severing of the human heart is our most accurate sensation — a sign we are not quite at home here.
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