Two Days Down
I wrapped up day two of my five-day chemo stretch this morning, and so far, it has looked a lot like what the doctors, nurses, and the internet promised. Pretty manageable. The needle still isn’t my favorite part of the day, but there is something oddly peaceful about three quiet hours each morning with a…
I Didn’t Get PICC’d
Today was supposed to be PICC line day. The step before chemo. The thing the doctor said we were doing. Simple enough. But then something unexpected and, honestly, kind of wonderful happened. I walked into the infusion center and met the nurse who would be placing the PICC. She was fantastic. Calm, clear, and the…
Chemo Scheduled – Round 1
It has been a really good week. I have been feeling completely healthy, which is a strange thing to say given everything going on, but I will take it. Right now, it feels a lot like waiting. Waiting for appointments, waiting for next steps, waiting to get started. I did get a call from Kaiser…
Meeting with Adada
This morning, Morgan took the morning off work, and we went together to meet with the oncologist, Dr. Adada. I’m grateful to report that he seems wonderful. Calm, clear, and the kind of doctor who makes you feel like you’re in good hands, even when the conversation itself is not exactly light. He walked us…
My March So Far
The last eight days have been intense. A couple of weeks ago, I thought I had the flu. The kind that knocks you down for a few days and then slowly loosens its grip. Except this one didn’t. My head pounded constantly. My fever spiked to 103 and above. I wasn’t eating. I wasn’t sleeping.…
Good Inside the Classroom
Dr. Becky Kennedy’s “Good Inside” is written for parents, but I couldn’t stop thinking about how relevant it is to the work we do with teenagers in schools. The core idea is simple, yet powerful: people (including children and teenagers) are inherently good. Even when they mess up. Even when they push back. Even when they…
What Drives Us
I first read Drive by Daniel Pink about ten years ago. At the time, I was thinking about it mostly as a parent and a teacher, and it gave me language for something I had seen but had not been able to name. Rewards and punishments only go so far. Lasting motivation comes from something…
The Teenage Brain – Under Construction
I just finished The Teenage Brain by Dr. Frances E. Jensen, and if you’re raising or working with teenagers, it’s one of those books that helps everything make a little more sense. Jensen is a neuroscientist and the mother of two teenage boys. Her book combines the science of adolescent brain development with the lived…
Slowing Down on Purpose
A teacher friend recently let me borrow a copy of The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer, and it’s one of those books that calls for some action. The message is deceptively simple: hurry is not just a scheduling problem. It’s a spiritual one. And it’s hurting us more than we realize. We…
The Voice in the Factory
My wife recently shared a podcast episode with me from one of her favorite shows: Atlas Obscura. The episode was on something called Cigar Readers (or Lectors), and it was absolutely fascinating. In the 1800s in Cuba, with around 500 cigar factories in Havana alone, a tradition/movement arose of having a reader in each group.…
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Mr. Zerwas Teaches Here 