May 10 2025

Hallelujah! Took my last final yesterday and just turned in my last assignment! I have reached the conclusion of the spring 2025 semester. Final grades won’t be posted until May 16th, but I already know that I’ve got an A in all classes.

I’m on track to graduate Spring 2026 and so is Thomas. I’ll get to walk the stage with my kid! Exciting, proud times!

Here’s the feedback for the creative non-fiction story I just revised and submitted, titled Diary of Starting Over.

“You have such a knack for conveying the bare essence of a traumatic situation in such a way that the reader can immediately understand and empathize.There are moments of immense heartbreak. Related to this, you also have an incredible ability to balance depressing topics with moments of levity and triumph. The line where you ask “Who the hell can say that to somebody they love?” hits so hard, and I absolutely read it in your voice, haha. Lastly, the nonlinearity of this piece is deftly handled.”

“I think one of the biggest strengths of your piece is the consistent strings and parallels. It can be hard to keep timelines straight when writing about many events over a long time, but you were able to keep everything succinct and orderly. You managed to take a tumultuous story and turn it into something with a positive spin, and I think that’s beautiful.”

Here’s the first paragraph and last paragraph. If you want to read the full story, I’ll be sharing with my Substack subscribers soon.

Starting over. How many times have you had to start over? I’m talking cataclysmic starting over. Life changing, starting over events. I’ve had five life changing, starting over experiences. I was 10-years-old the first time. At 38, I started over again for the last time. So far.

He chose not to use the already reserved ticket for the Christmas visit. Over the next several months, we argued, we talked about working things out, and we argued more. In the summer of 2007, I decided there was no going back. He stayed in Seattle. We stayed in Reno. It was the right decision.

***

That was the last time I had to start over.

So far.