The Way is Hard, but Clear

[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 Way is Hard, but Clear

Though it is the hardest going, the way is clear. – Mark Nepo

The Value In Swimming Up Stream

Finding Your Edge

I was first introduced to the idea of my edge in yoga. One of my first yoga teachers would guide us in a pose and instruct us to find our edge: that point at which we are fully engaged and balanced, just beyond comfort but in our full strength. I have searched for my edge on and off my yoga mat. Swimming up stream is about finding and embracing an edge.

Soft Strength

Swimming up stream requires soft strength. By soft strength, I am talking about flexibility and clarity and wisdom. Soft strength is not forceful and demanding and forceful. Soft strength seeks to understand rather than be understood. Soft strength knows why the salmon swims up stream rather the easiest path possible.

Beautiful Detours

Swimming upstream opens us to beautiful detours. Beautiful detours are about unanswered prayers, happy accidents, and heartfelt surprises. They are the reason why knowing a path and having a plan are useful to the extent that their establishment does not prevent growth and learning and discovery. The challenge of beautiful detours is one of presence during the journey: when we can touch, taste, see, and feel true wonder and joy.

Muscle Memory

When we swim upstream we build muscle memory. Muscle memory is the strength that comes from knowing you have accomplished a feat before. Muscle memory is about endurance and strength. Muscle memory looks like confidence wrapped in steel. We draw from muscle memory during times when the current of the stream is particularly rough and unpredictable.

Just Keep Swimming

When we swim upstream and get tested, it is important to just keep swimming. This is about strength and perseverance. This is about swimming with others. This is about seeking advice. This is about forward motion and momentum. When we swim up stream, it often is about our ability to just keep swimming.