This week, a dear friend stopped me mid-sentence and exclaimed: “Beth, you’re an ideas editor!” That’s language (a description for coaching) that I’d never considered. But my friend slowly explained that what I do isn’t just saying back what I hear and isn’t just asking a series of questions. Instead, it’s combining what I’ve learned in writing centers, through Reiki, and from years of mentoring writers and researchers. That is, coaching is holding up a mirror and ... Read more ...
interaction
When Speaking Up at the Holidays Means “Complaining” and Being the Killjoy
Last year, during the holidays, I blew up (yelling, cursing, and storming off), and the experience highlighted for me the need to embrace criticisms that I’m “too sensitive,” “too critical,” and “too complaining.” On the day I blew up, I was so overwhelmed, disconnected, and worn down by systemic oppression that my body couldn’t take it. I held myself together until I couldn’t hold it in anymore: then, I released a tidal wave of rage. I’m still processing, but I’m ... Read more ...
Eating Vegan in Ireland
From curries and creamy risotto to mint chocolate and coconut ice cream, Ireland offers an array of vegan dishes, including comfort foods and sweet treats. This summer I traveled to Ireland with only a few weeks of planning—after realizing how much I needed a period of extended rest and reset. When I began telling friends and family about the trip, responses went something like this: You’re going to Ireland? That’s awesome! But what will you eat?” The short answer is ... Read more ...
Responding to Microaggressions
How do we respond to microaggressions, or those everyday and commonplace actions that convey bias, invalidate people, and reinforce structural oppression? We know from research and personal accounts that microaggressions occur all-too-frequently across contexts—workplaces, family gatherings, and community settings. From hurtful words to dismissive gestures, microaggressions do more than communicate harm. They have wide-reaching impact, for they deny access, constrain ... Read more ...
Responding to White Supremacist Terror, This Time in El Paso
I woke this morning in Ireland to news of the El Paso shooting: the latest act of white supremacist terror in the United States. My body was already aching (today’s a rest day after some seriously long walks), but the news ramped up the ache and lodged itself in my chest. I recognized the familiar heartache that comes with shootings and acts of violence, particularly against Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC)—in this case, against Latinx folks in Texas. Along ... Read more ...
How Small and Sustained Actions Turn Resolutions into Habits
Typically, by mid-year (by the summer solstice for those of us in the northern hemisphere), new year’s resolutions are a thing of the past. Months after setting resolutions, it’s easy to have forgotten or moved through them—with seasons shifting our embodied needs, creating the conditions for new intentions to be named. The summer solstice, then, provides the occasion for setting new resolutions, for looking backward to previous ones and forward to daily practices that ... Read more ...
Responding to Injustice: Why Settling the Nervous System and Slowing Response Times Matter
Recently, I’ve had several moments of witnessing first-hand the links between settling the body (that is, settling the nervous system) and showing up more mindfully, more open, and more like the “best self” that’s needed when striving for social and racial justice. In contrast, moments when my nervous system is “keyed up” (from exhaustion, from unresolved tension, from disappointment, and more), I find myself having knee-jerk reactions and being short with ... Read more ...
Why I Don’t Believe the #CovingtonCatholic Student’s Statement
I woke up today (the day after MLK Day in the U.S.) to a Facebook friend who presents as a white woman asking if I’d seen the #CovingtonCatholic student’s statement because she’s not sure what to believe. Later in the day, a white family member also sent me the statement, presumably to vindicate the white students. These messages come in response to me speaking out over the past few days about the incident, asking for white folks to break patterns of niceness and to ... Read more ...
Announcing the Decision to Leave Higher Ed: 3 Responses that Surprised Me
Today the fourth part of my series “Outside Higher Ed” appeared in Inside Higher Ed. This piece shares three common responses to my news of leaving academia: “Good for you. I wish I could leave.” “You’re so brave.” “That’s a really big decision. Will you be ok?” I also share my emotional reactions and processing around these responses, which truly surprised me. More than anything else, I learned through announcing my decision that I’m not alone in struggling ... Read more ...
Living in Shutdown USA
In recent weeks, friends have been asking about my experience with the government shutdown. I’m feeling and experiencing a lot, living in DC, or “America’s lightning rod” (thanks to Katharine Weinmann for this language from a recent comment). Certainly, the city feels on edge and reminds me of the urgent need for resistance, for visioning, and for choosing alternative paths, if we are ever to stop the perpetuation of injustice. I look to everyday life for direction, ... Read more ...
