[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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Sabbath Time
What is the Sabbath right now?
The days run together. Sleep is interrupted by horrible dreams, and rest happens while drinking wine and watching Netflix. I wake up with a list of things to do and never get anything completely done. Simply being feels painful. I am blessed to even be considering the Sabbath. Blessing feels wrong in the face of sacrifice and suffering. Work happens now as “essential” workers are in harm’s way while I shelter in place. Work happens now as many jobs morph and merge and burn. I don’t wait breathlessly for weekends because I am not really sure when they are happening.
Sunday as Sabbath?
Having grown up in a Christian church, I think of Sunday as the Sabbath. It was the day that we went to church and then visited friends and/or loved ones, or friends and/or loved ones visited us. That was keeping the Sabbath. Keeping the Sabbath holds meaning for me as a time for connection. I know keeping the Sabbath is not reserved for particular religions or days of the week, and has many interpretations. Keeping the Sabbath right now jumbles and disjoints as I navigate putting one foot in front of the other through each day.
Keeping the Sabbath
The Sabbath often prioritizes and celebrates rest. We are experiencing chaos of a grand order. What is rest during chaos? During chaos, find what allows you to rest and gently hold on to it. During chaos, breathe and just keep breathing. During chaos, remember the center holds no matter how big the storm. During chaos, quiet judgment and fear with kindness and gratitude. During chaos, be the helper even if being the helper means being still. At rest, we heal. At rest, we grow. At rest, we find peace. Resting is the way to serve and connect with ourselves.
Sabbath After Chaos
I am not exactly sure when the chaos started. When I think about vast numbers of lives disrupted and cruelty being common practice for far too many people, I am afraid it feels like chaos started long ago. Perhaps we are numb to chaos until it inflicts pain on usually comfortable masses. I am not sure when the chaos will end. I am not sure what the greater impact of the tearing off bandages and revealing wounds will be. I am not sure there are enough prayers and acts of solidarity and support to honor the heroes of this hour. I am not sure what accountability and justice and reconciliation look like in a post-chaos world. I am sure healing will happen, in time. There will be time to live in health and wholeness. There will be time for the pace of work and rest to be re/established. Right now. Rest.
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.
