Blog

Triangles in Walmart This week, I watched a third grader in a small town

This week, I watched a third grader in a small town open his very own brand-new dictionary and land on the word integrity. He read the definition aloud, then he looked up at the room and announced that he had integrity. Zero hesitation, no squint at the ceiling while he self-analyzed. He simply had that trait, settled and sure.

I was standing at the front of his class with my fellow Rotary Club member, distributing those essential books to the children, and wondering… could I have been brave...

Buckle Up for the Bittersweet In the last few days, I feel like I've napped

In the last few days, I feel like I've napped more than I’ve been upright. Somehow, I'm still exhausted. I keep snapping at my husband over things that do not deserve that aggression. My back hurts, my hips hurt, my everything hurts - which is not news - but hurting while also being sad is a different animal than hurting while being fine.

Wednesday, October 14th, 2026 was one of the best days of my life.

That is precisely what's led me to this point... eating a cheese stick at 3:30 A.M. while I...

“Fingers. Knees. Spine. Stomach. Purpose.” by Mariah Tyler Moore BEEP.

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

I don’t open my eyes yet. Opening my eyes is a commitment and I’m not ready for commitments at 6:00 in the morning. Instead, I take inventory, the way that out-of-state doctor taught me to. Fingers? Swollen but functional. Knees? Jury’s still deliberating. Stomach? Already angry about something unknowable. Lower back? Screaming, but that’s just my spine paying rent in pain.

The dog is awake before me, which is a contest he absolutely invented and is very proud of...

View All

Inaya Larson came home to Clover Valley to lick her wounds, not to blow the lid off of anything. One quiet reporting job at the county paper, that...