My friend Julia and I boarded the subway train in Mexico City, chatting about our day. We were on our way back to our apartment. The crowded train was racing along...

I grew up on a farm, where responsibility and hard work were high priorities. These values were so highly prized that I still struggle with taking time and resources to spend...

At the end of each school year, my mom would put all the broken crayons from the classroom in a container for me to use at home. I never liked broken...

My wife was away leading a retreat, and I was at home alone. I decided to cook myself a fairly simple meal with what we had on hand: chicken, rice, some...

For several years I’ve been collecting heart-shaped rocks. It began on a vacation in Joshua Tree, California. My husband and I were rock climbing; at one particularly difficult spot, I was...

Soon after my father died, I was cleaning out his garage and realized some of his tools had gone missing. I immediately suspected that my two troublesome siblings had sold them...

I spent many of my early years in the American Midwest. Some consider Midwestern states flyover country, but this does not accurately depict the land or its rich resources. The Midwest...

In the summer before my senior year of high school, I worked as a waitress at an inn in New Hampshire. As I sat on the front porch steps waiting for...

We have an avocado tree on our property. When in season, the tree is so fruitful that our family of seven struggles to eat all the avocados. Often when I travel...

On my last vacation, I was going to be out of town less than a week, so I decided to take only a carry-on and a personal item. However, after packing...