There’s a sense of newness to this time of year, and I like to think it offers an opportunity to embrace a new opportunity, take a little leap of faith, and be open to unexpected change.

The cicadas will be guests at many of the region’s commencements this year. We might as well offer one of them the chance to speak to the Class of 2021.

I’ve been joking that I wanted to find a cicada swatter to add to my flyswatter collection during the visit from Brood X.

Everything bursts into bloom in the spring. The grass is greener, the bushes are bursting with color, and buttercups are popping up on the neighborhood lawns. It’s such a beautiful time of abundance. Much as I love spring, though, I also find it to be tiring. May always seems to be the busiest month of […]

The school year can end anytime, so we can kick off summer vacation.

Racism isn’t something that happens to other people. It affects all of us—and each of us plays a part in naming it, opposing it, and changing what we can.

7 poems inspired by a full week

When my sister Maureen and her husband, Eric, told me they were expecting a baby, I couldn’t imagine more exciting news. The baby would be my parents’ first grandchild and my first niece or nephew. This little one was due in April 2003, and we couldn’t wait. I went with Maureen to a doctor’s appointment […]

7 poems sharing 7 topics on my mind, including the impending arrival of the cicadas

There is an emptiness and sorrow to infertility that is hard to describe.