Sometimes life hits you in the face. Then it hits you again, and again, and again. It hurts every time, whether it’s loss of property, health, or a loved one. Maybe you’
It’s snowing outside as my Christmas vacation draws to a close. I glance out my window and marvel at a white, wintry paradise. Behind me, in our living room, I hear the
Let me begin with a silly example, just to get it out of the way. I don’t like cheese. The recipe addition is usually added to mask the more flavorful, and often
On the Sunday of the first week of my senior year, I sat in church with my family, taking notes as I listened to my pastor preach on Hebrews 10. He spoke about
Two thousand years ago, a newborn Hebrew baby changed the world forever. Though many prophets heralded His arrival—even narrowing down the exact year He would be born—the wisest religious scholars of
I’ve always known people who struggle with who they are and what they are supposed to do. I’ve known friends and family who let the wind carry them through life because
Calling the desert an unpleasant place to live would be an understatement. It is a dry, inhospitable place where even your tongue dries out for lack of water. Temperatures range from scorching hot
By Erin Hall My grandpa died yesterday. It happened at three in the afternoon, on Saturday. It was a gorgeous day, one of those ones where you start to feel summer looming on
It’s the middle of my last semester of college. I’m working on my capstone project for a show in the auditorium at the center of campus that smells of old wood
Are you a Christian? Do you feel as if you don’t fit in anywhere in this world? Believe me, you are not alone. Most people today find everything about Christianity offensive—particularly
My mom is in the kitchen. She’s cooking my favorite meal, and the smell wafts down the hallway, past the pictures on the wall, and into my room. She tells me how
Close your eyes and try to picture the perfect neighborhood. What do you see? A sturdy house with decent air conditioning? A good school for your children? Friendly neighbors with whom you have
On the Sunday of the first week of my senior year, I sat in church with my family, taking notes as I listened to my pastor preach on Hebrews 10. He spoke about
Since I was eleven years old, my dream has been to write. Whether it was screenplays, novels, or articles, I wanted to write something that would change the world for the better. Something
Do you ever wonder if the world has lost its mind? Just watch the news or scroll through your social media feed for two minutes, and you’ll remove all doubt. The top
Winner of the English Forum creative nonfiction division. There they were again. I halted at my window when I noticed hundreds of flecks of white and pale pink outside, bright and delicate against
Stop and breathe. The humanity in me struggles to learn lessons the first time around. Experience is a brutal, tireless instructor for life. Over and over, I find myself sprinting on the treadmill
Honorable mention of the English Forum creative nonfiction division. My father took me through the woods behind his childhood home. The air was crisp, customary for late March in the Indiana farmland. The
Another wave crashed inside the boat, filling it with water. The ship was surging back and forth as the waves punched into it over and over. The wind screeched, and the thunder yelled.
Stop for a while on a narrow stretch of New England farmland. First, you notice the smell. The land still remembers being a dairy farm under your great-great-grandfather’s hands, and it offers