The Slow Regard of a Difficult Past By Krista Stevens Highlight “In my family, love was the slow accumulation of moments in which I was not subjected to great harm.”
Seeing Private Everyman By Steve Edwards Feature Steve Edwards searches for the hidden truths in the public and private sacrifices his granddad made serving in World War II.
Eight Things You Need to Know About Me and the Beach By May-lee Chai Feature A white woman came up to my mother, leaned in close and said, “We whites have to stick together against the Asian invasion.” My mother was ecstatic. “She liked me! They like me here!”
We Have Always Lived in the House By Victoria Comella Feature In the face of tragic loss, Victoria Comella searches for the home she left behind, only to find it seventeen years later in the last place she expected.
Losing the Middle Ground By Katie Kosma Highlight More families are having only two children, leaving an entire culture to fade away: middleborns.
Making Peace with the Site of a Suicide By Liz Arnold Feature One woman reconciles with her father’s death on her family’s property.
La Otra By Longreads Feature When a woman and her daughter moved in next door, Jaquira Díaz found her world was suddenly turned upside down.
City on a Hill By Leslie Kendall Dye Feature A dementia patient’s daughter begins to question her own grasp on reality.
But What Will Your Parents Think? By Morgan Jerkins Feature Morgan Jerkins tackles the time-worn question of how far is too far to go in revealing yourself in first-person writing.
Of Breakdowns and Breakthroughs By Jenny Aurthur Feature After suicides and heartbreak ravage her family, Jenny Aurthur finds she has no choice but be transformed.
How to (Almost) Get Away With Murder By Krista Stevens Highlight No one twigged that whenever a member of the Harrison family died, it was always just before an important hearing in a bitter child custody battle.
Here is My Heart By Megan Stielstra Feature Long after the shooting at her old high school, Megan Stielstra worries about her father’s heart. Part one of a three-part series on gun violence.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: Washing the Pillow Cases Every Day By Krista Stevens Highlight Chappell Ellison would have done anything to ease her brother’s suffering from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
‘Forgive Yourself. And Forgive Me.’ By Alice Driver Feature Alice Driver considers what lessons to take from a late uncle’s life.
How to Write a Memoir While Grieving By Nicole Chung Feature Nicole Chung contemplates loss, adoption, and working on a book her late father won’t get to see.
The Money His Father Left Behind, and the Life it Would Start By Michelle Legro Commentary When Alexander Chee’s father died at 43, he left behind a trust that would set the course of his son’s life.
A Mother’s Less-Than-True Story of Being a Child Bride By Michelle Legro Highlight Getting married in her swimsuit at the age of 12 was something Danny Wallace’s mother would tell anyone she met. It also wasn’t true.
Fake It Till You Make It By Sari Botton Commentary On the pressure to pretend there’s no fallout after your parents’ divorce.
My Secondhand Lonely By Aaron Gilbreath Feature Raised by a single, independent mother, one young woman struggles with her familial inheritance and the relationship between self-sufficiency and social isolation.
Giving Thanks, Silently By Sari Botton Highlight Nina Coomes recalls her family’s Thanksgiving vows of silence at a Catholic retreat center in Illinois.
The Itch and the Touch By Aaron Gilbreath Feature Families are complicated. Caring for Grandpa John was even more so.
The Doctor Will See You Now By Sarah Miller Feature Sarah Miller eulogizes a close (but not close) relative.
My Half-Sister’s Half a Life By Longreads Feature Jeannie’s father never spoke of his daughter who had died at 16, the mysterious half-sister who shared her name.
Two Brothers, Two Earthquakes By Jesus Jimenez Feature On Sept. 19, 2017 a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Mexico, sending panicked residents fleeing into the streets. For two brothers the fear was familiar—they had experienced this exactly 32 years before.
On American Identity, the Election, and Family Members Who Support Trump By Nicole Chung Feature Nicole Chung reflects on the burden of engaging with racism and educating white people, including some in her own family.
The Oldest Restaurant in Kabul: Where Tradition Trumps Rockets By Maija Liuhto Feature For over 70 years, Bacha Broot, located in the center of the Old City of Kabul, has been serving chainaki — savory lamb stew — despite Soviet occupation, civil war, and the Taliban.
The Whistleblower in the Family By Aaron Gilbreath Feature After her father was arrested for fraud, Pearl Abraham began the the slow, painful process of unraveling her Hasidic family ties.
Why the Most Beautiful Poems Defy Understanding By Krista Stevens Highlight “In a poem, we feel what is there, but also what is not.”
The Uncomfortable Discoveries That Come with Home DNA Testing Kits By Mike Dang Highlight Home DNA testing kits are making it easier for people to learn more about who they are, but they often come with surprising results.
My Mongolian Spot By Longreads Feature An ephemeral birthmark is a rare gift, connecting me to generations spanning the centuries.
