[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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What You Missed That Day You Were Absent from Fourth Grade
The English lesson was that I am
From Brad Aaron Modlin’s, “What You Missed That Day You Were Absent from Fourth Grade“
is a complete sentence.
I am is a complete sentence. I am is a complete sentence. I am is a complete sentence. Simple wisdom.
I think about the things I might have missed in 4th grade. Like the day when Ms. Cavallo lead a relaxation exercise before a math test. Like the movie we watched, “Growing Up and Liking It.” (That movie was such a big deal they sent permission slips home.) Like the simple machines unit where I got to build a pulley from little wood wheel and thin rope. Like reading group where I got the most stars for reading the most books. Like art class where it always took me forever to complete anything and I was never happy with the result. Like wearing Scott’s hoodie because we were “going together.” Like perfecting my back handspring in cheerleading after school.
The simple wisdom of 4th grade. Taking deep breaths. Feeling big feelings. Learning strengths and weaknesses. Falling in love with stories and friendships. Naming joys and fears. Planting the seeds of dreams. It’s all in the 4th grade.
About Katie
Born in Louisville. Live in Atlanta. Curious by nature. Researcher by education. Writer by practice. Grateful heart by desire.
Buy the Book!
The Stage Is On Fire, a memoir about hope and change, reasons for voyaging, and dreams burning down can be purchased on Amazon.
