Life from a Rotting Log
What can a swamp-soaked piece of wood teach us about resilience? Between 40 bug bites and a sinus infection, here is why feeling unproductive is sometimes the first step to growing something beautiful.
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Finding Beauty in the Everyday
As the weather warms up, my family and I have been spending more and more time outside. Last week, we went to a different park or hiking path every day after my long days teaching. We’ve been in South Carolina now for about 9 months, and I finally feel like we’re starting to get a…
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Grotesque Protectors
Spiders. So many spiders. That’s one of the things I’ve had to get comfortable with around my home here in South Carolina. They stay outside for the most part, but there are always two or three sitting on webs around each doorway. Part of me wants to go out there with a hose and clean…
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A Flower, a Walk, and a Story from the Past
Earlier this evening, I took a short walk with my wife and baby. On our way home, I spotted the little purple flower pictured at the top of this post and snapped a photo. Once inside, I did some quick research. I couldn’t pin down the exact species, but I soon learned it was a…
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Where the Flytraps Snap
The plants here in South Carolina are like something out of a fever dream. I’m not talking about the wild vines or the endless expanse of pine trees, but the smaller, often overlooked plants you can find here. Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve had time to explore the outdoors around where I live,…
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Lessons From a Stinky Morning
There’s a strange poetry found when beauty and ugliness share the same space. Every morning at around 7:31 a.m., I step out my front door and my senses flood with South Carolina air. This time of year, it’s a beautiful thing. It’s still humid, but in a soft sort of way. Instead of oppressive and…
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Steam, Ants, and Hurricanes: Life in South Carolina
I’m no stranger to heat, but South Carolina weather is something special. The past couple of weeks have been pleasant enough, but yesterday the sun returned with a vengeance. When I got off work, I opened my car door, and a literal cloud of steam rolled out. If you’ve never experienced that, imagine putting your…
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What We Don’t See
I got to walk to work today, and it afforded me my first real look around this new city. Fortunately, the weather cooperated. (We’ve been having massive rain and thunderstorms the last couple of days.) In fact, it was even a decent temperature—which is saying something, because I haven’t experienced a decent temperature here until…
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Sticky Air and Strange Blessings
A quick google search reveals that my home town has a current humidity level of 13%. As I sit down to write this article (inside my house, mind you) I have a little hydrometer that reads 90%. Outside is even more damp. In other words, I seemed to have moved to about as opposite a…
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The Worlds Stinkiest Attraction: Parisian Sewers
When you think of Paris, you think of the storybook streets, the beautiful architecture, and the Eiffel Tower—not the sewers. Yet, if you’re like me, you’ll likely find them every bit as interesting. A few weeks ago, my wife and I were in Paris looking for interesting things to do. Imagine our surprise when we…
