[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!
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.
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.
“Each time a woman stands up for herself, she stands up for all women.”
Maya Angelou
This quote was on Janice’s sign at the Women’s March in 2017. I think it perfectly sums up her approach to life. Janice was about standing up. Whether it was about standing up for the air we breathe. Standing up for history. Standing up for women. Most importantly for her, standing up for family, friends, and others whose lives she touched.
In her last message to me in March of this year, she shared how honored she was to be part of the gratitude conversation project. I assured her the honor had been all mine. In talking about gratitude with Janice, several points can be made. The knowledge that she had been given so much in this life propelled her always forward. She had an indefatigable sense of purpose that actually restored historic bridges and changed environmental public policy. Many people talk about leaving the world better than they found it. She actually did. Compassion was the foundation of grateful living for her.
Most of Words of the Spirit
I am grateful for the gift of Janice’s friendship. Her smile and laugh warmed my heart. Her style knew no bounds. I did not get to listen to enough of her stories.
