The Justin I Remember

10 years have passed, but today, it somehow feels like yesterday. The last time I saw you. The last time we talked. And to be honest, I don’t want to think about today. I want to skip it, remove it completely from the calendar, and swiftly move onto tomorrow. But I can’t. I don’t control …

Access to Belong

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” Words of Helen Keller, spoken during her tours around the world as she advocated for social justice, disability rights, and suffrage. This quote replayed in my head yesterday morning as I was getting ready to travel to Saint Louis to attend the Annual …

Self-Reflections from Year 37

Yesterday, I turned 38. When out to lunch with coworkers, I was asked what my self-reflections were from 37. My response was concise. 37 did not turn out how I expected it to last year at this time, when my boyfriend, eventual fiancé, met my parents over my birthday. In the course of one year, …

Not-so-mad March

I probably don't need a calendar to know when March is here. I feel it. In the cool, yet rising temperatures as the season begins to change. I smell it in the air as I step outside. I see it in the regrowth of green grass and leaves. March is also in my bones. My …

Bee Stings and Broken Pieces

"The idea behind a kaleidoscope is that it's a structure that's filled with broken bits and pieces, and somehow if you can look through them, you still see something beautiful. And I feel like we are all that way a little bit." - Sara Bareilles Dating apps are the worst. Swipe, swipe. Match. Swipe. Repeat. …

VIP Parking Permits

Hey friends! Guess what? I have one of these: Yep. Sure do. I've had it since 2013. Though I have been "disabled" since 1986 and began driving in 2000. In case you didn't know the process, here is how one might acquire an accessible parking placard or plate: First, you must have a disability that …

5 Years.

5 years. At the end of 2009 I first inductively studied Philemon, a 25 verse book of the Bible, which lit some kind of passion for studying scripture inside me I'd never experienced before. A year later I enrolled in an intro course to this same method of studying the Bible. The following year I …

Thank God for Google

After pouring several hours of sweat and tears into this baby...she's up and running! Don't expect anything too fancy. If I've learned anything in the last two days it's that I'm not as tech savvy as I thought, designing a website isn't as easy as it looks, I probably should work on my tendency to …

Dance It Out – Being Shamelessly Brave

I love to dance. I’m not a particularly good dancer, though I can keep a beat (2 and 4) which I credit to some sort of rhythmic gene I inherited from my mother. I’m mostly a closet dancer. Not literally, but I stick to revealing my not so great moves to anything within the walls …

My Father’s Daughter

On Friday my dad turned 54. This blog is dedicated to him. Maybe you know him, maybe you don't. If you're lucky enough, you can call him a friend, even luckier - family. If you are one of the 3 luckiest girls in the world... you call him Dad. Last weekend I discovered some unsettling …