miriam beth

 1. words that are inspiring me right now:

when i first went back to school i didn't want to tell anyone what i wanted to do. i didn't want to say out loud that i wanted to go back to school, and i really didn't want to say that i wanted to be a nurse. i was terrified of what people would think, i was terrified of failing, going for a semester or two and then just stopping. i was terrified that it would be too hard. that anatomy class was my first science class in a million years--and my first applicable to nursing class. i was terrified that id hate it, that i'd made a huge mistake. (little did i know anatomy is the fun stuff and that chemistry was just around the corner. but i didn't have time to wait for the fear to leave, so i just started going. and it's far from over. i've got two prerequisites before i can apply to the programs--programs, by the way, that are overwhelmed with applicants every semester. who knows what's going to happen? we'll just have to wait and see. 

2. music i'm listening to:

3. what i'm baking:

triple vanilla peach pie from an old pie cookbook that has long since been out of print. someone told me once that the best cookbooks are the old cookbooks. maybe they're right because i haven't baked a bad pie from that old book. 

4. this got me fired up:

this article by meg conley on medium.

'If mothers unenroll their children because they cannot supervise full-day remote learning and are concerned about the repercussions, they’re told they’ve violated a sacred social contract. Mothers who form pods to get childcare for their kids while they remote learn are privileged pariahs. Single working mothers who do not have the network or money to form a pod will be reported to the authorities when a neighbor realizes their seven-year-old is home alone every day while her mom earns money for food and rent. Stay-at-home mothers are not allowed to feel anything but grateful to be of service to their kids and their community.

I finally understand that help is not coming. With kids home from school but still burdened with scholastic progress, many working moms will cut back when they were just ready to spring forward. They’re going to lose years of progress when it matters most to their careers. In the decades to come, those women will be missing from the leadership positions they would have occupied if we’d decided they mattered enough to help them. "

man, i have said this again and again. to anyone who will listen, including the very sweet member of my bishopric who looked sort of scared. i suspect he's never had his wife yell at him about gender inequality (poor ryan, on the other hand, has probably memorized my rants at this point). mothers do not matter. we know this now. now let's do something about it. let's begin to value the caretakers in our society instead of standing right on top of them. 

5. what i've got planned:

a yard for my chickens, complete with a fence I'll be making on my own (hopefully I can convince Ryan to help). in that yard? a peach tree. for shade. and peaches. for more pies. 

a fall garden. complete with pumpkins, carrots, garlic, onions, kale, and arugula. 

a couple more trips to the beach and the pool and perhaps even the museum.