In American culture, much of your value as a person is determined by your job, yet so many jobs are either looked down upon, or legitimately useless. And the hunt for value in work leads many to desperation and depression. Donald McCarthy examines this dilemma, and offers a different path forward.
Naima Karczmar with the opening to her six-part look at race, identity, an d growing up, the brilliant experimental essay "Naming It".
"My mother taught me about white people, swore at them when they appeared on the television, readjusted her rock as if it could protect her from them as well as the electromagnetic waves."
Cable News punditry? Can it really be that hard? Donald McCarthy doesn't think it is, and he has the (non)credentials to give it a go!
No matter which candidate, from which party, becomes the next President of the United States, the continued dehumanization of Muslims across the world is likely to continue. Donald McCarthy on the history of, and the impact of, their negative language.
Has discourse been permanently dumbed-down and angried-up? And how can we go back? Linda G. White takes a look in her essay "Something of Value".
There was a time when most people were courteous, polite, and respectful of others, especially those in authority. They knew what manners were and comported themselves accordingly. In those days, the world was a quieter place – no shouting each other down so one’s own voice could rise above the fray. Individuals took turns talking, listened with interest, and exchanged ideas, considering others' opinions carefully even if they weren’t in agreement with them.
If you haven’t noticed, those days are gone.
Brittany Michelson reflects on her lifelong love of dolphins, and the dangers they face in the waters of Japan, in her moving personal essay "Going to Taiji".
I’m going to Taiji in February. I’ve heard it’s freezing in the early morning when the boats go out. I’ll need a big jacket, mittens, a warm hat. Is there something I can wear to shield my heart?
Darlene P. Campos shares words never spoken to her absentee father in the moving "What I Never Told My Father".
Fifteen: Out of everything I had, I never had you.
Linda Bragg shares some very personal memories in her moving essay "My Sister's Hands".
... these graceful hands had nothing to do with tea parties or expensive rings. They dealt with the raising of four children, cooking countless meals, and rolling crust for holiday pies. Her hands washed mounds of laundry and dishes after a day of work pounding at her company’s computer. They cut the hair of homeless people as part of a ministry she loved. Her hands didn’t pick up teacups, but dainty seashells from her favorite Turtle Beach.
He's reignited the liberal base with his populist message, but just who is Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and is his socialist message too radical for America? M.G. Poe takes a look at the viral political sensation of the 2016 election.
Diane Payne shares the last, tragic moment with her companion, and how a family moves on.
I’ve buried many pets, so this grief isn’t unfamiliar. It’s not that death makes me more vulnerable or immortal. It’s that while I’m immersed in grief over losing a dear pet, that immersion of grief blends in with all the other losses of life, and for awhile, I just need to be immobilized in this profound sadness.
