When I was born in the early 1950s, the average life expectancy in the U.S. was around 68 years. That number has risen steadily over the decades—today it’s about 78 for the general population, with women living on average to 81 and men to nearly 76. The gap between men’s and women’s life spans is…
Tag: Writing
Digging Deep: What College Essays—and Life Writing—Are Really About
I’ve been working with students over the past few days on their college essays—using shared Google Docs and Zoom calls. It’s always an interesting process, and this year is no different. Part of what makes these essays so meaningful is that we dig deep. Really deep. We look for those moments in life that carry…
Reflections on a Sweet Bonhi Reunion
The biggest frustration with a Friday evening, all-day Saturday high school reunion is simple: there’s not enough time. Not enough time to sit, settle in, and have a real, meaty conversation with old friends. Just a quick hug, a handful of sentences to catch up, then—before you know it—someone else walks up for their own…
Mrs. Mary Wilshire, A Sweet Memory
I wrote this a while back, but since this is my all-school reunion weekend in Bonham, Texas, I wanted to reshare this sweet memory. I took a private Speech class from Mrs. Mary Wilshire for two years when I was in middle school. I walked to her house from school along Agnew Street and I…
An Approach to Writing Flash Fiction That’s Fun and Fast
I wrote the story below a while back during one of those quick writing exercises I like to do when I’m looking to stir things up creatively. I grabbed a deck of alphabet cards—the same kind I’ve used with younger kids when they’re learning letters—and spread them face up on the table. From that deck,…
The Art of Getting Lost on the Page
If you’ve taken one of my personal essay classes, you’ve probably heard me say this more than once: Use your writing to discover something you didn’t know when you started. That’s not just teacher talk. It’s how the best essays—especially the personal kind—find their legs. Here’s the thing. When you sit down with the intention…
Flash Fiction: A Matched Pair
Madeline was tired. She had been boxing up all sorts of antiques all afternoon since the owners, Maude and Jason Fredericks, were going out of business. These boxes would be heading to an auction where they would all go for what Maude described as “pennies on the dollar.” Madeline was especially upset about three different…
Where Mama Was
When I was little, I was a Mama’s baby; I mean, a BIG Mama’s baby. At night, I sneaked into her bed to snuggle; in the daytime, I played near her while she read, typed, or worked on bills. By age five, I didn’t mind playing in another room or outside in the backyard as long…
What the American Dream Looks Like
I wrote this piece several years ago. Fong not only attended medical school, but is currently completing an orthopaedic surgery residency. His brother graduated from the University of California, San Diego, with a degree in computer science, and his sister is also attending UCSD, where she is studying engineering. I’m proud of these kids and…
Flash Fiction: Choice vs No Choice
“What does the phrase, “I didn’t have a choice” mean to you?” the therapist asked her client. “Didn’t have a choice? Hmmm. Yes, that’s what they all say. No choice means not taking responsibility.” Marie stared at her therapist, waiting for her reaction. “Who is ‘they’,” her therapist asked. “What?” “You said, ‘That’s what they…
20 Minutes a Day 