How Does It Taste?

[The Stage is on Fire] is a page-turner in which, much like life, there are no easy answers and yet each step of the journey yields insight and hope. This work of heart must not be missed!

Melanie Faith

Creative Writing Teacher, Essayist & Poet.

Katie Steedly’s first-person piece [The Unspeakable Gift] is a riveting retelling of her participation in a National Institutes of Health study that aided her quest to come to grips with her life of living with a rare genetic disorder. Her writing is superb.

The Society of Professional Journalists

In recognition of receiving the Dateline Award for the Washingtonian Magazine essay, The Unspeakable Gift.

I thank you … It is the authenticity of your “class notes”; and it is the delicacy and skill with which you present the nuances of classroom life and the actuality of your students’ and fellow teachers’ lives.

Maxine Greene

Philosopher and Education Scholar

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The more spacious and larger our fundamental nature, the more bearable the pains in living. – Wayne Muller

I like the idea that living can be spacious and large.

I like the idea that we can live in expansive, abundant, and generous ways. I like the idea that life’s pain can be eased by returning to our basic selves – selves that know reaching, connecting, strengthening, expressing, and creating.

What is the why?

This is the why behind my love of the outdoors. This is the why behind my most creative impulses. This is the why behind the value of being with friends and family. This is the why behind my gratitude practice. This is the why behind my curiosity.

What I remind myself?

I remind myself to be gentle with myself and others. I remind myself to get outside and breathe. I remind myself to connect with my body. I remind myself to be with others. I remind myself to sing. I remind myself to write. I remind myself to pray.

What does space while we are in pain look like?

Space when we are in pain means seeking joy. Space when we are in pain means practicing forgiveness. Space when we are in pain means noticing beauty. Space when we are in pain means serving others. Space when we are in pain means rest.

Our fundamental nature can be nourished and strengthened.

Life is painful at times. Pain results from separation from our fundamental nature. We can move away from pain and toward peace by nourishing and strengthening our fundamental nature. We can heal wounds. We can live vulnerably. We can act courageously. We can taste the sweetness of life.