Jess Human

I knew I wanted to marry Cara in November of 2012. We had been together one year. I was in my first year teaching, and she was off saving the world by responding to  natural disasters and through conservation.  It was the first day of Thanksgiving break. I was exhausted. For my educators out there, you know the refuge that is Thanksgiving Break. I laid on the couch paralyzed from my exhaustion and overwhelmed by the fact that the next day one of my best friends was coming to visit us in St. Louis. Our apartment was a mess , but I couldn't muster up the energy  to clean. This is where Cara stepped in, she turned on her slow jams and went to work. She washed, dusted, mopped and (literally and figuratively) swept me off of my feet . It was in this moment, as she serenaded me to "Your Song" from Moulin Rouge (which is our song), that I realized I could easily spend the rest of my life loving her . Now I would be lying if I said this was the first time I had felt thi...

Today, I listened to a talk. Well …I somewhat listened to a talk. The speaker wanted to advance the audience’s perspective, and to inspire us to create change.   D espite these good intentions, I checked out. Before I go into detail about what caused my disengagement, I need you to know that I don’t consider myself radical. While I often support revolutionary and radical causes, I don’t consider the way in which operate radical. I recognize the detrimental implications of oppression, and injustice, and I attempt to create change within my peripheral. I believe in order to engage in genuine radical acts, one must create a counter culture. To me, radical acts are organized efforts whose aim is to completely shift the dominant paradigm. Conversely, I work within contexts that— If I am going to be completely honest —can perpetuate the status quo. Therefore, I am not radical, analytical… yes, critical…yes, but not radical.   So let’s get back to this talk. The talk open...