Blooming from the Mouth of Spring — an excerpt of “1863, December” (HaraChi fanfic)

1864, March Chizuru is often quiet, but when she laughs, it’s rain. She’s joined the captains again for dinner, as has become her custom, and Hijikata steadfastly pretends the girl doesn’t exist. That seems to suit her fine.  Chizuru isn’t a spectacle. She watches and listens as Heisuke and Shinpachi argue over thefts of food, …

“Fuyu no Hanashi,” from the anime “Given” (English)

Just like a sprinkling of snow left in the shade When spring arrives, these feelings, they will stay What words are there to clear my bed of love? And should I even want to try when everything that blooms grows to look like you? Your life was lost to winter’s edge, and you’ve no more …

If Your Brother Sins Against You: Processing my Reactions to Covid Response, Racism, Economic Inequality, etc.

When I ask myself, “What would Jesus do?” the answer isn’t, “Let people fend for themselves and on your own part do the same.” So, what am I to do?

I Wonder– 5 Years of Marriage

Upon five years of marriage, I reflect on how bisected our lives now seem. Still young and yet, there has been such a discernible "before" and "after" to what we have known, an "adulthood" and a "childhood," which tended to overlap between the end of our engagement and immediately following our youthful wedding. The changing …

Favorite Cast Member (30 Day Fandom [CQL] Challenge, Day 7)

I know so little about the personal lives of the actors behind CQL. From what little I do know, I think that the leads Xiao Zhan (playing Wei Wuxian) and Wang Yibo (playing Lan Wanji) both seem very nice and are admittedly very talented. Additionally, I've heard that the actor playing Jiang Cheng is very …

17 Thoughts While Watching “Sailor Moon Crystal”

I never got into Crystal as it was released. As a kid, I loved the original Sailor Moon anime (especially "R" and "Promise of the Rose!"), but as an adult, I found Serena and Darien's relationship problematic and thought Rini both creepy (Darien is her FATHER!) and super annoying. Now that I'm strapped for shoujo …

Things I Have Learned So Far — “When I Should be Sleeping” Edition

Morality isn’t always black and white (but sometimes it is), and people are very gray. Empathy (both extended and received) is beyond price. Humans will pack bond with the oddest “other,” such as inanimate objects. You can handle more pain than you think, both physically and emotionally. Depression is a bitch, even if it’s not …

“Fruits Basket” Season 2 is a Treasure in these Troubled Times

Let's not mince words. 2020 sucks for the world at large. As an American, I don't see America getting any better any time soon. In fact, I'm afraid it will only continue its downward trend from here. Will we still be a country by 2030? Who knows! BUT, do you know what 2020 did provide …

A Response to “COVID:19 – Guilt and the Breaking Point of Teachers”

Preschool Prattle

As the meme goes, I’m in this photo and I don’t like it.

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Mitch Lingo tells it as it is. Teachers are predisposedfrom the very beginning to give everything we have for our students and, what’s more, society. We are taught to ignore our health–both physical and mental–if it means that we won’t be able to give our all to the kids. We are reminded that the school system isn’t going to/cannot step up if we take a step back to breathe. If we dare utter the words, “I need,” we are censured, “You signed up for this,” or “You knew about that going into teaching,” or “It’s for the kids.” Because we did know this and it is for the kids, we cave instead of demanding better. As teachers, we have soft hearts for children, and guilt is a devastating weapon against the kindhearted. For too long, society…

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