Hi everyone! I want to thank you for the wonderful responses to my two latest essays. It took me a while to write both and it was a great process of growth and introspection. I have a third essay in the works, but I'm not sure when I can publish it because...drum roll.....I'm leaving for … Continue reading ‼️Announcement‼️ Blog Overhaul- 🏴Elena’s European Escapades🏴
Writing
The Fraud of Normal
Well it happened again. I feel my cheeks, burning with the white-hot rage of powerlessness. My anger and disillusionment is tangible yet I stay silent. I've always been silent in these situations, refusing to refute misperception, instead allowing an identity 20 years in the making to be diluted by a split second interaction. Anyone who … Continue reading The Fraud of Normal
Breaking the Binary
Hi everyone I’ve been working on the following essay for weeks, attempting to precisely articulate the complex thoughts and feelings I have as a person who neither identifies as “abled” nor “disabled”. This is a huge departure from my previous posts, but this topic is very important to me. If you enjoy it, let me … Continue reading Breaking the Binary
Romeo and Juliet-Impulsive Teens Cause Six Deaths
This review is going to cover the 1968 and 1996 versions of the classic, starting Leonard Whiting/Olivia Hussey and Leo DiCaprio/Claire Danes respectively. For anyone who slept through 9th-grade English class, the William Shakespeare classic (originally published in 1597) tells the story of two kids from feuding families. They meet, catch instant "feels", get married … Continue reading Romeo and Juliet-Impulsive Teens Cause Six Deaths
City of Angels – A Profound Feast
Hi! This is an interesting film for me. I first watched it in my early teens, and I didn't understand what was going on at all. As I've gotten older, I've been able to unpack the layers of profound wisdom in this movie and gain a vastly greater appreciation for it. The film begins with … Continue reading City of Angels – A Profound Feast
The Farm and the Family
Hello! This week is a bit of a shift from media review to a personal essay on my family and the farm that we cultivate. As a small child, my family and I made the four-hour journey every other holiday to the white two-story farmhouse. Thirty people would find a way to cram into six … Continue reading The Farm and the Family
A Valentine to the Earth
Earth, heart, tear, art, breath, bear “The aching joys, the dizzying raptures The still, sad music of humanity” I steal words from Wordsworth because I see the worth of the words But he had it wrong The music of humanity isn’t still or sad It’s a chant calling forth wisdom From the earth and all … Continue reading A Valentine to the Earth
Monumental Occasion!!!!
Hello all!! Yes it is unusual for me to post two articles in one day, but this is an unusual occasion: I have just had my first article published in the Bethel University Clarion!!! The text of the article is below the pictures. This is less an instance of hustling and fighting for what I … Continue reading Monumental Occasion!!!!
Passengers-The Power of Isolation
Passengers is a thoughtful movie that explores the primal human need for community. After spending a year alone on the Starship Avalon due to a technical malfunction, Jim encounters (in an interesting way) Aurora, a young beautiful writer. (So she and I are kind of twins. 😉 ) As the only two humans awake on … Continue reading Passengers-The Power of Isolation
Elena’s Grace 