Category Archives: On Learning
The Rabbit In The Soccer Net
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Rabbit NULL.jpg) (originally posted 10/2014) The other day my six-year-old ran in the house screaming: “A RABBIT IS STUCK IN THE SOCCER NET!” When I went outside the poor thing was writhing frantic, the webbing wrapped double … Continue reading
Dirty hands
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/L13 NULL.jpg)A month ago I started doing a CSA workshare at a local farm one morning a week in exchange for a full share of weekly produce. I wanted to get my hands on the fresh vegetables and … Continue reading
Not just the facts
I was getting ready for an interview recently, a follow-up phone call for a magazine piece profiling a semi-famous person. An entrepreneur who’d started off on the completely wrong foot before finding the right calling as a television personality, and … Continue reading
Night shift
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/greenfieldbegone NULL.jpg) Driving past highway construction last night, had a heated conversation with the younger boys about jobs that sometimes require working when other people are sleeping. Nope, shouldn’t be necessary, says the 5yo. “What about doctors and … Continue reading
The Myth of the Perfect Start
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/log-frozen-copy NULL.jpg)The log was 30 feet up in the air, a sort of telephone pole of a balance beam. I was supposed to walk from one end to the other, holding onto nothing. The rest of the group … Continue reading
First You Crawl
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/dancers NULL.jpg) I went to a dance pageant recently, a holiday performance of ballet, modern and jazz with local girls age 6-16. Actually, I have no idea how old the dancers were. Some were clearly 25, which is … Continue reading
Own Your Opinions, Kids
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/JacksonMurphy NULL.jpg) One of my children told me recently that he couldn’t ever be a reviewer — of books, art, restaurants, or a sports columnist — because he didn’t want to hurt people’s feelings. (Never mind that just … Continue reading
Daring to Care: What fostering animals taught me about parenting
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/raccoon1 NULL.jpg) The kids were clamoring for a new pet. A year earlier we’d said goodbye to our dog, and before that, the cat. In between was an unsuccessful series of hermit crabs. When each one crossed that … Continue reading
If You Can’t Stand The Heat, Get Into The Kitchen
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/statler_waldorf NULL.jpg) When my first novel came out two weeks ago, I had most of my ducks in a row. I’d arranged a book tour to places where I had the most friends and family. I’d written magazine … Continue reading
On Rejection and the Beautiful Blueberry
(http://www NULL.nicholebernier NULL.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/blueberries1 NULL.jpg)I was not in the best of moods the other morning. It was gray and sleeting, and I’m guilty of letting weather affect me. The to-do list seemed overwhelming, and the calendar said there were to be … Continue reading
