Even in harsh conditions, we thrive

White Sands National Park Sometimes living in the desert I am struck by how harsh the living conditions are. Just a few miles up the Sandia Mountains on the outskirts of Albuquerque, the landscape is dry and hot, filled with cacti and rattlers. It is not a hike for the faint at heart, or those …

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On being a teacher

I've been thinking about teaching and teachers a lot recently. Having been a writing teacher for many years, some of my own fondest teachable moments happened to me in my writing classroom. I made a lot of mistakes and I grew up in my classroom. I tried grand experiments that utterly failed, and I apologized. …

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The rural urbanite (or urban ruralite), and loving it.

In the last year I haven't written on this blog very much. I have been collecting lots of images and stories to post, but my family and I have been gathering our strength (and our belongings) for new adventures that have taken much of our focus, spirit and strength. Transitions are time consuming endeavors. Often …

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Why Dirt Road?

Why Dirt Road Journal? The short answer is because my family loves to get off road and have an adventure. But there's a lot more to it too. We are adventurous souls. Being on the road of life pushes boundaries and comfort zones, and adventure makes new rules and breaks old ones. That is where real …

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Cultivating presence in DIY

Fence. Completed. We believe in DIY in our household. There is almost nothing that we can't do on our own. If we don't know how to do it, we ask someone for help. That person is usually our neighbor because we all believe that he knows how to do everything. Sometimes we just have to …

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Bushwhacking Education

My son at the summit of his first 14er. I had never considered myself “that kind of mom." Last year I let my son drop out of school. He was not yet 16, the “legal age” a person can drop out. In order to work around those legalities I was confronted with owning the title …

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