Writings
Personal essay, memoir, creative nonfiction, and poetry.
Piano
I don't know what made me do it. It could have been my emotions running high from the difficult interaction I had at work that day. Maybe it was watching (really watching) my 6-year-old rehearse a piano piece from memory. I sat down at my 20-year-old electric...
The T-Shirt Drawer
During the Kon Mari tidying craze, I went through the shirts in my T-shirt drawer and got rid of the ones I never wore, or didn't like, or that didn't "spark joy." I re-folded and arranged the survivors of the great purge, so they were standing in the drawer in neat...
How to Live on an Island
For the last five years, I’ve lived on an island. It’s not the kind of island you might be imagining, with cerulean water, white sands, and resorts for miles; it’s a small barrier island off the upper Texas coast, with surf turned bluish-brown by the currents of the...
Dear Residency, from a Resident Wife
Dear Four-Year, Anesthesiology Medical Residency, Today, we say goodbye after four years together. The 1,460 days that my family and I have spent with you have been the hardest of our lives so far, in every possible way: professionally, physically, financially,...
Sprinkles
Shit. I don't have any rainbow sprinkles. My child's teacher had graciously texted me earlier in the day - "Are you doing anything for his birthday in class tomorrow? If not I will probably do something for him!" In all the planning for his birthday party that...
Leaving Academia, Part I
Leaving academia, part I
Carnival in the Time of Covid
The other day, I stood whooping for beads, arms waving, with a baby on my hip, as I watched one my town's local Mardi Gras parades march past. I reached for a juice box for my youngest, and I looked up to see float riders passing by, dressed in plague doctor masks....
Why I Started Writing
I've been writing since, well, I could write. In elementary school, I wrote a book of poems about everything from penguins, to why I hated school. They were cute and pithy and terrible and by God I made those verses rhyme. In third grade, we got to write a story,...
Gratitude During Medical training
My husband is currently finishing year 8 out of 9 years of medical training, and while HE is the resident physician, to an extent I feel like "we" - him, me, and our children - are all on this medical training journey together. When the residency years have me at my...
Silent Night
It's Monday, December 20, and I am exhausted. My youngest child, 17 months old, is snuggled tightly against my breast while I rock her and sing to her before laying her in her crib to sleep. Because it is near Christmas, I decide to sing "Silent Night." She places her...
Feet in the Grass
When I feel as if the world might pull me under, I put my feet in the grass. And since I live on a barrier island on the Gulf Coast, I can do this pretty much year round. If I have shoes or socks on, I take them off. I find a green spot in the sun and I engage in...
6 Resources for Resident Physician Families
When my husband began medical school, I had no idea what it would mean for me, our marriage, and our family. These are some of the resources I have found helpful, and that I wish I had found sooner on our medical training journey. If you have others you love, please...
15 Tips for Resident Physician families
1. Expect that they will not, for the most part, be available. They will not be at home very much. If they are at home, they will likely be working, studying, sleeping, or thinking about doing one of those things. 2. Make your own plans. If you want to do something...
Snails
It had rained, and the snails were out. I noticed them as I walked along the damp sidewalk to load the kids in the car. Maybe a dozen snails lined the path from the back door to the vehicle, all different sizes. I told the boys to look out for them when we got home...
Tiles
The cool tile stones held my heaviness.Gently, firmly, they reminded me:I'm still here. One rectangle was the mother,One was the teacher,The one to the right was the scholar,That one there was the spouse. But I couldn't recall the name for fine, gritty paste in...
Tiny Spoon
One of my friends posted an Instagram photo of a large cup of foamy cappuccino with a tiny spoon - and she called it "the perfect combination." Like when you go to the local ice cream store, taste some flavors with the tiny taster spoon, then eat your regular-sized...
Eulogy for the Family Ranch
My paternal grandparents' ranch sold in 2018, after being in the family for nearly 34 years, and present for all but one of mine. The sale of the Ranch was a tremendous loss: it marked the end of an era, the loss of a sacred space in my life's rhythms, the unraveling...
Family Recipes
Ever since I started staying home with my children, cooking and baking have become a creative outlet and a way to connect with my little ones. Trying new recipes or reimagining old ones is an intellectual and creative challenge I can take on from the comfort of my own...