Editorials

08/2/16

A Letter to My Future Students

Dear future students,

You may not believe it, but as the summer is drawing to a close, I’m excited to get back into the classroom. I’m actually looking forward to meeting you, to learning your names, to teaching you strategies to write sophisticated papers, and to read those papers.

As I’m bringing up my lessons and creating our class calendars, I wanted to give you some advice. Hopefully you’ll somehow come around to this post so you’ll be ahead of the game when it comes to the first day of school.

Show up

My first piece of advice is pretty basic, but considering absences I have seen in the tens, twenties, and ever thirties, it’s worth mentioning – if you want to succeed in my class, you have to show up. You can’t go far without being present, and being present is more than sitting in your seat.

When you show up, first, you have to come to class on time.

07/29/16

Why #Girlboss & #Bossbabe Have Got To Go

The hashtags #girlsboss and #bossbabe have swept social media, with 2,574,479 and 1,457,339 Instagram hits, respectively, to date.

Women are using the tags on photos that demonstrate their professional or personal strength, fearlessness, successes, and ambition, always lifting up others in the process.

The notion of girlboss and bossbabes has united women and truly started a movement of what seems very empowering to the gender deemed the weaker sex by popular societies around the world.

So why is this a bad thing? Why do I say these hashtags and language have got to go?

Come at this with an open mind, and let’s break it down and take a closer look. Looking forward to your take and responses at the end.

07/10/16

Embracing the little moments

We were driving down the winding, country road, my mother and I, on our way home from the store. The air conditioning was blasting on full, sending welcomed chilly surges to my otherwise sweltering body. It was about 95 degrees outside, but my pregnant body made it feel like it was 110.

It was summer in Wisconsin, and though it was hot, I was happy to be spending time at one of my favorite places in the entire world, my family’s summer home.  I was singing along to some pop hit on the radio when I saw him.

“What’s he doing?” I asked my mom. I squinted to see more clearly as the man walked on the shoulder of the road up ahead. My mom slowed the car as we passed him, and I instantly told her to turn the car around.