Collection Three: Spring 2022

Collection Three


Spring 2022

 

This image of a Great Grey Owl was taken by Jordan Rudeen near Emmet, ID in January, 2022.
@jordanrudeenphoto

Meditations on Teaching and Learning in the Time of Covid


The third collection of the Writing for Change Journal broadly captures what it has meant to teach and learn during the pandemic, and the myriad of ways we have been agents of change during the last two and a half years. Vulnerable, imaginative, and at times confrontational and provocative, these pages demonstrate newfound capabilities to grow, and previously unrealized capacities to change. This collection begins from the assumption that what we have learned and what we have taught others in the face of unprecedented challenges reveals our strength and resilience, and ultimately our belief in a better world, a world that reflects our becoming.

 

Our Editors

This collection is made possible of course by the tremendous writers and creators featured in this collection, but also a collaborative team of editors. Makyra Williamson and Sarah Jones helped to bring this collection to life, from early conceptual discussions to managing submissions, and working with writers and creators through the editing and design process. Both completed this work while earning MA degrees from Boise State.

 

 The “Best Years of My Life”

Abby Price

“I may not be able to describe to you their smiles but I could give you a long list of all the ways in which they are beautiful, and have inspired me to be a better person.”

The End of “Savage”

Veronica Yellowhair

“When I hear or see the word, all I think about is the unjust murder and the humiliating word labeling my ancestors as destructive, uncivilized, merciless Indian savages.”

 Teaching Myself & Learning From Others

Julia Dubois

“My disease taught me that I am stronger than I ever realized, but the isolation from the pandemic taught me that this strength also comes from those around me.”

 

 

Interdisciplinary Isolation

Marissa Maldonado

“There always seems to be this pressure in academia that we have to fit inside a box, but no one tells us its dimensions.”

 Kindness is a Gift

Janee Hitesman

“We have the power to change the world through kindness and that is one of the most important things we can do.”

Double-Masking

Vienne Aberle

“Masking serves to protect myself from the negative perceptions of neurodiverse people, and for a long time it was the only way I knew how to survive. For the first 19 years of my life, I wore it every single day, and until the pandemic I hadn’t known I was wearing one at all.”

 

 

The Fear of Being Called an Artist

Hazel Morgan

“During the recent Covid-19 pandemic, in particular, many people turned towards these varying levels of self-expression to cope with the greater situation. Despite this great turn towards the artistic, however, most people are still reluctant to give themselves the label of “artist” or call what they create ‘artwork.’”

 Myopia

Kyle Barrow

“I haven’t been scared for most of the pandemic. I kept my mind busy. I enrolled in graduate school. I learned how to jump rope and play ukulele. 

But now I am terrified that my daughter will spend the rest of her life trying to unravel the trauma that she has experienced.”