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I’ve got some good news and some bad news. The good news is, we’re landing. The bad news is, we’re crash landing. I could hear our friend’s son’s voice quoting this line from the movie Madagascar this March as we hit the landing strip in Rum Cay, Bahamas. It was the five of us Mullens […]
Read More Crash Landingthings i hate: lies bigotry elitism gossip chicago winters middle seats on planes late movies any plans away from home after 7pm stouts grainy apples tuna fish loneliness banana flavored candy dentist appointments getting weighed noisy eaters heavy metal criticism snakes rats whiny adults rejection religion what i love: drew abbey josh will family Black […]
Read More The ListShe turns right into the middle lane and out of nowhere there is a drag race blasting up behind us and we are blocking it and I’m yelling at her to pull over and out of the way as fast as she can. My sister called Detroit the Wild, Wild, West. I may have […]
Read More The Wild, Wild West (Side of Detroit and of Life)One year ago I was sucking down GU packs for calories and running on energy from naps I was able to get in here and there. Since the moment of that dreaded phone call, days in intensive care with Josh and then the sleepless nights that followed, I was just putting one foot in front […]
Read More Creating SpacePropped up by pillows on my bed, I stare out our attic window and into the brown and gray abyss of a Chicago winter. The branches are stiff and lifeless. Once in a while an icy wind blows through and they bow in respect. I can only imagine they want curl back and snake those […]
Read More Chicago Winter BluesLate November I realized how close I was going to be. I had less than two hundred miles left to run in order to reach the 2,000 mile mark for this year. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted it. I wanted that 2,000, plus 18 more. (Because, why not? Runners […]
Read More 2018 in MilesThe evening news announces this idea of arming teachers. My children who were lounging on the couch and lazily spooning junk food into their mouths sit up a bit straighter. Our teachers with guns? I spout off my irritation with the idea and push it all away with the swipe of my hand. “Teachers shouldn’t […]
Read More The Kids Are AwakeWalking out of the high school this morning I notice the groups of kids hanging out at the main entrance. They joke around, laugh, tease each other, and all seem to be enjoying the company. All the girls are tall, thin and have long hair pulled back in pony tales. All the guys wear their […]
Read More Everyone Has it Together But MeI’ve told our story so many times now. It’s easy to punch it out without feeling everything too deeply. The phone call, running towards the flashing lights, drama in the trauma room, waiting during surgery… All of it, we can share with a certain ease. The kind of ease that comes along with so […]
Read More Facing the Black CloudsWhen we decided to stop going to church, I wasn’t worried about those things that used to keep me awake at night. I wasn’t concerned about the state of my soul. I wasn’t worried if God could love a sinner like me. I no longer felt like I was living a life simply in the […]
Read More It Takes a Village