Ribs

Since 1941, my family has had an odd tradition. Three days a week, my great-grandfather Pop brought home ribs. After dinner, he'd go around the table inspecting each plate, making sure each rib was stripped down to the bone. If he found one morsel, you couldn't be excused. Pop believed that, before you could leave the table, you had to finish your ribs.

Lenses and Photography

6am. A train’s call, riding on the spring breeze, follows our winding stroll through the streets.

Neurocircuitry

In our essence, we are neurocircuitry; our thoughts stimulate an emotional circuit which runs a physiological response. But what if our neurocircuitry fails?

Officer Cadet School

I am twenty years old and I already have a kid. Well, 30 actually, and they’re all around my age, some older even. Every morning I am the one they salute, the one who can only be referred to as Sir, and the one whose every command must be obeyed. Having the power to get a group to do anything you say may seem like a good deal, but in truth it is far more terrifying.

Swimming + Anxiety

I can’t breathe. That was all I could think after I surfaced from my dive on the first lap of the 200 Individual Medley, which was, of course, the dreaded butterfly. I was dizzy not just from oxygen deprivation but from paralyzing anxiety.

I’m a Pessimist (PS)

I was the first place winner in the 2015 Malibu Optimist Club Oratorical Competition. My speech discussed how I would harness optimism to change the world with my future achievements. But it was all a lie, because I’m no optimist…  I’m a pessimist.

My Writing

When I was in sixth grade, I started writing about a character called Mr. Bennet. Almost every story involving him had an accident as the climax, from motorcycles crashing to losing the winning lottery ticket down a storm drain..

Poetry and Finding My Voice

I sat in my seventh grade English classroom frightened. I had always struggled with self-confidence and understanding who I was. I didn’t know how to tap into my personal voice. But on that day, everything changed.

Pushing Myself Too Hard

I’m irresponsible. At least, that was true in the eyes of my teacher. The assignment was to read up to chapter five, nothing more. But, like every night before, I had somehow managed to read too far ahead.

Puberty Workshops

“What’s an erection?” the fifth grade student asked. As I stood at the front of the class, I questioned, again, my decision to become a puberty workshop facilitator.