by Gwen | May 22, 2020 | Authenticity, Freedom, Jesus, Perfection, Public speaking, Riverside Chats, Writing
Real public service requires trust which requires honesty. It’s not about upholding an image or fealty to a party. It’s not creating a club whose members agree on everything. It’s not an act that follows a script. It’s about showing up real and offering all that you are to help people.
by Gwen | Apr 28, 2017 | Devotions, Education, Family, Grace, Gratefulness Project, Gwendolyn Brooks, Home, Hope, Iran, Jesus, Joy, Justice, Margaret Atwood, Marjane Satrapi, Social justice, Students, Thankfulness, Uncategorized, Writing
Every day I leave the Triple F Ranch to enter the world of academia. In academia I spend a lot of energy in conversations about language, perception, and communication. I do a lot of critical thinking. In between classes I take forays into my writing life where I think about poverty, and justice, and hope and Jesus (and coffee and kids and fiction and memoir and Guideposts devotions). And sometimes I come home with a headache.
by Gwen | Apr 20, 2017 | Basics, Family, Gratefulness Project, Patch, Thankfulness, Writing
When I started the “Gratefulness Project” I had the rather grandiose idea I would write letters every day to express my gratitude. I wrote two. One to God and the other to my mother. The next thing I did was write about how I was grateful for my students,...
by Gwen | Oct 27, 2015 | Community, Public speaking, Writing
I believe writers write at least in part so we don’t have to talk; we can say what we want to say, put it out there, and hope people connect with it. But we don’t have to face anyone else when we’re writing. We don’t have to feel stupid if a joke falls flat—at least not instantly, like happens when you’re speaking. We can also edit till we feel we’ve got it right, or as close as we’re going to get. Speaking is not like that unless it’s totally scripted. And of course, totally scripted is not how I roll.
Recent Comments