I recently found a photo of John and I during our winter in Aspen—I had shared it on Facebook at the time. In the photo, we are standing on our new (to us) cross country skis on the Forest Service road we lived along, a steep forested mountainside behind us, leaning into each other and … Continue reading Embracing the True Meaning of Adventure at Solstice
John & I set off on our two-day journey on Friday morning, packed and ready for the longest bike ride either of us had ever done. Our destination: Mounds View Grassland, a property owned and managed by The Prairie Enthusiasts that was sure to have specialist grassland bird species I would have a hard time finding by bike in Madison. Still, it was 35 miles away.
Green birding relies on human-powered transportation, making it carbon neutral. The only rule is each birding trip must start and end from a home base, usually your place of residence.
I stare at the cards in front of me—78 of them, to be exact. Each one is adorned with bold, colorful illustrations, along with a single word. Words like mindfulness, generosity, compassion, and order. Each of these signify a value — a belief or principle that we believe is important to guiding the way that … Continue reading Reflections on Solstice: Living a Life of Values
On June 3rd, 2016, a chance meeting in Denali National Park led to a friendship that founded love. Seven years to the day later, John pulled out a mountain-engraved ring on a Lake Michigan beach and asked me to marry him. This is our story.
If I were to assign a word to the past year, it would be “acceptance”. Acceptance of the things I cannot control, the people I cannot change. Acceptance of the things I can. Acceptance of the fact that I am in control of my own happiness and expectations, of fulfilling my own needs. This fall, … Continue reading 2022: A Year of Living Slowly
How do we start to unpack a lifetime of widely held beliefs and values that we now suddenly want to stop holding us back? How do we begin to view weight gain as morally neutral? Because this is what diet culture is. A $72 billion industry that makes us believe being thin is objectively healthier, more beautiful, and more desirable.
https://youtu.be/DUtHErwNaSQ?si=JvRK_jiNycGY1VAA This was my first year trying to capture a second of every day, and boy am I glad that I did. I'm missing some days, and others I filled with photos. It certainly isn't perfect, it's almost messy. But that's life for you, isn't it? Messy and beautiful all at once. Welcome to my … Continue reading 1 Second Everyday: 2021
“Why do you care about protecting wilderness?” I pose this question to visitors every week in one of my classes. After three or four days in Denali National Park, I know that they’ve heard about as many facts and stories as their brains can hold (and that they won’t remember most of them). I reserve … Continue reading Growing Alongside Nature: Life as a Field Educator in Denali National Park
The Curiosity Chronicles 