Welcome. I’m so glad you stopped by. When I read about the Oracle layoffs, my first thought was: what an inhumane way to lay off people. My second thought: this is the kind of moment that can leave a person feeling a little unmoored. When something like this happens without warning, it’s not just about…
Blog
Welcome to Your New Name
A few weeks after maternity leave ended with my first-born child, I was still adjusting to the new routine of dropping my son off for daycare. One day, as I entered my daycare provider’s home, I set my son’s infant carrier down and handed off the diaper bag to his caregiver Gayle. From inside the…
Turning Points: Thresholds that Invite a New Direction
I remember the feel of my dorm room’s concrete block wall digging into my shoulder, the edge of the wall holding me up, but also uncomfortable. Like it knew I needed both support and a strong nudge too. “You want to do what now?” My mother’s voice from 200 miles away sounded tinny through the…
Bus Ride
It’s 1983 and I’m standing in the Arrivals area of Guadalajara International Airport in Mexico, heart pounding, disoriented. I’m 20 years old, and completely alone. “Jenni,” I think to myself, “You are definitely NOT in Kansas anymore.” My arrival in Mexico marked the beginning of a 10-week study abroad experience to supplement my Psychology and…
Mastodons and Memories: Reflections on a Road Trip Adventure
I stepped over the threshold and the scent of a Northwoods gift shop greeted me like a long-lost friend. Part birch bark, part pine scent, it’s the olfactory welcome-wagon greeting of any trip I’ve ever taken to northern Michigan. Normally that waft of tree scent means that I’ll find some fascinating trinket that accompanies me…