Our nation is the enduring dream of every immigrant who ever set foot on these shores, and the millions still struggling to be free… this idea called America, was and always will be a new world. President George H.W. Bush I doubt that any child says he or she wants to be a refugee or immigrant when asked about their adult aspirations. Yet millions of people find themselves in those categories. Technically the first Pilgrims we […]
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Book Festival
Columbus Metropolitan Library Book Festival The Columbus Metropolitan Library Festival was the library’s first Book Festival, planned to celebrate its 150th anniversary. They estimate over 30,000 folks came out to check out the festivities. It was 18 months in the making and involved dozens and dozens of staff and volunteers. Over and over again I heard people saying they hoped this was the first annual event. Columbus Metropolitan Library has many good reasons to be […]
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Four Small Steps to Mental Health
Small steps yield big results. “Four Small Steps to Mental Health” is a guest blog from Roanne Johns. I love it when readers offer to write guest blogs. The timing of this one is perfect. I’m heading to the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s 150th-anniversary book festival this weekend. Her article about an important issue was good for my mental health as it is one less thing to think about this week. Thank you, Roanne. Daily Habits […]
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Fourth of July 2023
Fourth of July 2023 has me thinking about frogs. Perhaps you’re aware of the frog-in-the-pot theory of change. Apparently, you can boil a live frog easily if you put the frog in an open pot filled with cold water. Gradually increase the temperature over a long period of time, and the frog will not jump out, even as the water temperature rises to lethal levels. Heather Cox Richardson has written a succinct and helpful summary […]
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Historical Stories Inspire Change
This week’s article “Historical Stories Inspire Change” is a guest column by Arlene Westcott who offered to provide it as I was packing to head to the 2023 Historical Novel Society conference. It was a huge help to have it waiting for me when I returned from several days of discussing the power of historical stories to inspire change. That was my hope when I wrote Mayflower Chronicles: The Tale of Two Cultures and Mary […]
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