“Bee” Kind: Ignoring the stingers in life
The closest our culture comes to an exhortation is the command: “Be Kind.” Emblazoned in all manner of places, this seems to […]
Books worth reading: Robert McCloskey’s Burt Dow Deep-Water Man
If you encountered author and illustrator Robert McCloskey and stopped at Make Way for Ducklings, you would be missing out. McCloskey is […]
An unlikely return
Most people have lost virtually all understanding of virtue. There is a lingering awareness, sure, perhaps captured best in the tired mother’s […]
What is “leaning in”?
In business, “leaning in” means taking opportunities and striving for leadership roles. The term was popularized by Sheryl Sandburg’s 2013 book, Lean […]
Fighting fire with fire: the battle of the sexes in the 21st century
When a woman begins a sentence with the words “the feminist in me,” a statement that is uncivil, inhumane, and unhelpful is […]
Who was Elsa Beskow?
Beskow was a renowned Swedish author and illustrator. She was born Elsa Martmaan in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1874. Elsa was the second […]
Books worth reading: Elsa Beskow’s Aunt Green, Aunt Brown and Aunt Lavender
In an occasional series, we consider what is worth reading. While many works considered fall under the category of children’s literature, it’s […]
Becoming a stay-at-home mom
The weeks after a baby’s birth can come with a sudden revelation for some mothers that, contrary to all expectations, they want […]
Childhood: the latest model and its discontents
A six-year-old receiving a public-school education instructed a four-year-old that the goal of life is to stay close to grown-ups. She explained, […]
The priority when “Old Time is still a-flying”
“The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. […]