Let's start each school day with an acknowledgment of the Indigenous people's land we occupy

Let's start each school day with an acknowledgment of the Indigenous people's land we occupy

The practice of land acknowledgment dates back centuries (at least) among indigenous communities, and is more common in the mainstream in Australia, New Zealand and Canada than in the U.S., but it is a growing movement here as well.

The idea is that before an event — whether it’s a school day, a sporting event, a meeting or even a family meal — you take a moment to name, thank and consider the people whose displacement allows you to be where you are. Whose historical trauma makes it possible for you to thrive as you do in the place you live?

Read More

Welcome home, my love, for the first time: a reflection on the urgency of love (and a new song)

Welcome home, my love, for the first time: a reflection on the urgency of love (and a new song)

Right now, at this moment, I have two kids: a nine-year-old who is technically my stepson, and a three-year-old who is my biological son.

Julian and I met just before he turned two, so we’ve been together a long time now. Loving and parenting him have changed my life in ways that were immediate and ways that have turned out to be gradual.

When Zeke came, change struck in a bewildering flash.

Read More