Introduction Empty nest syndrome is often described as loneliness after children leave home, but the deeper transition can touch nearly every part of a parent's life.How much should you call?What happens to a marriage after decades of parenting?What if being needed has become part of your identity?How do holidays change when adult children build families of … [Read more...] about Empty Nest Syndrome Story: 5 Modern Stories for Parents
hope
The Nickel Boys: 5 Modern Stories About Truth, Trauma and Hope
Introduction What happens after we learn that courage alone is not enough?Colson Whitehead's The Nickel Boys gave us Elwood and Turner, two boys who respond to injustice in radically different ways. Elwood believes truth must be spoken. Turner believes survival requires knowing when truth can get you hurt.The scholar conversation pushed those questions … [Read more...] about The Nickel Boys: 5 Modern Stories About Truth, Trauma and Hope
The Nickel Boys: What Kind of Hope Survives Injustice?
Introduction What kind of hope remains after a person discovers that goodness does not guarantee safety?Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys gives us Elwood Curtis, a boy who believes deeply in justice, dignity, and the moral vision of Martin Luther King Jr. It gives us Turner, who has learned a harsher lesson: survival may require caution, silence, distrust, … [Read more...] about The Nickel Boys: What Kind of Hope Survives Injustice?
The Crown of Ashes: A Modern Shakespearean Tragedy
Introduction By William ShakespeareThere are seasons when kingdoms fall not because their enemies are strong, but because their own hearts forget why crowns were first imagined.Men have long believed that power is won by sharper swords, louder voices, or cleverer schemes. Yet I have lived long enough among kings, fools, lovers, and murderers to know another … [Read more...] about The Crown of Ashes: A Modern Shakespearean Tragedy
Demon Copperhead Explained: Barbara Kingsolver’s Pulitzer-Winning Novel
What if every child had at least one adult who never gave up on them? Some novels entertain us.Some educate us.And a rare few quietly change the way we look at other people.Demon Copperhead is one of those rare books.Winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Barbara Kingsolver's modern retelling of Charles Dickens' David Copperfield transports readers … [Read more...] about Demon Copperhead Explained: Barbara Kingsolver’s Pulitzer-Winning Novel