I used to think it was a little silly, the way so many of us (particularly women, it seems) respond to major events in other people’s lives, whether happy or sad, by sending food. As if a pound cake will mend a heart broken by an unexpected death. As if a pan of turkey tetrazzini will make the “witching hour” less crazy-making for a mom caring for a newborn, a toddler, and a preschooler. Then I got cancer. And for... Read more
When writing about reproductive ethics, I’m not in the business of telling people what to do. Occasionally, however, I offer my opinion on particular uses of reproductive technology. One practice that I find unacceptable is gender selection of embryos and fetuses for non-medical reasons. (A medical reason for gender selection would be if a family had a history of a serious sex-linked genetic disorder.) In the U.S. and Canada, prenatal gender selection is driven partly by immigrants from patriarchal cultures,... Read more
I am incredibly lucky to have supportive friends, family, and writing colleagues who rejoiced with me as my book No Easy Choice: A Story of Disability, Parenthood, and Faith in an Age of Advanced Reproduction was officially released last Tuesday. A number of people have asked what they can do to help spread the word about the book. So here are a few simple things that you can do to encourage others to read and share No Easy Choice. Post... Read more
I’m starting a new Friday tradition of linking to a post from one of my fellow bloggers on Patheos (“Patheos Peeps” is the name of the Facebook group we recently started). Blogging for Patheos has thus far been a blogger’s dream. I get personal and technological support from being on a team of writers on a growing web portal. Just existing on Patheos has about quadrupled my blog traffic, without my having to do anything other than write stuff regularly.... Read more
Nick Kristof wrote last weekend about the American Academy of Pediatrics’ new policy statement on “toxic stress” as a precursor to all sorts of physical and psychological ailments. When infants and young children are subjected to stressors, including abuse and neglect, and when they don’t receive adequate parental love as an antidote to that stress, they are more likely to grow up sick, poor, and involved in crime. My first thought upon reading this (other than that it makes complete... Read more
Group projects. Does anyone (besides teachers) actually like them? I hated group projects when I was in school. I hated scheduling my work around other people’s schedules, relying on people who could not always be relied upon, and having to let go of some interesting angle on a topic because no one else shared my enthusiasm. My 12-year-old daughter says she hates group projects because if you end up with the kid who talks nonstop or doesn’t listen to directions... Read more
January 17, 2012. The day my book, No Easy Choice: A Story of Disability, Parenthood, and Faith in an Age of Advanced Reproduction, is officially released. Two weeks ago, I wrote about the ten-year journey that led from living through the decisions Daniel and I made about having children in light of my having a genetic bone disorder, to writing about that journey, to publishing it. On Friday, I published an excerpt from the introduction. Today, I’m going to post... Read more
*This is an excerpt from the introduction to my book, No Easy Choice: A Story of Disability, Parenthood, and Faith in an Age of Advanced Reproduction, which will be released next Tuesday, January 17, by Westminster John Knox Press.* We have been in the emergency room (ER) for several hours and have reached that point when things are calm, almost—unbelievably—relaxing. My nearly four-year-old daughter, Leah, is lying on a gurney next to me, spaced out on sedatives and pain relievers... Read more
These first two months with our rescue dog, Eddie, have taught me more about grace, about unconditional love and acceptance of others as they are, than even twelve years of being a mother to three children. I’m a little embarrassed to write that, and surprised that it is true. I’ve always struggled a bit with how pets fit into the spiritual life. When the Feast of St. Francis rolls around every year, I think it is sweet, this idea of... Read more
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Four Ways for Writers to Be Good Neighbors in Cyberspace (and Promote Our Own Work Too)
Writers today (particularly nonfiction) must have a robust online presence, particularly if we hope to earn some money by writing. Yet cyberspace is a tricky place. Most writers I know struggle with the same few issues: How to promote our work without being self-absorbed and obnoxious, how to avoid letting our self-worth get caught up in whether commenters like our writing (or not), and how to interact with other writers without being haunted by envy or unhealthy competitiveness. These issues... Read more