A farewell message to my beloved profession — “What is your Why?” Our preschool special education director invited everyone to share at our first team meeting this school year. Though I didn’t chime in then, I’ve been pondering my multiple Why’s since that meeting three months ago. This is my belated response. …

And it’s certainly no disease! — It’s official. After counting the months between periods for well over two years, I can confidently announce that I hit menopause. I can give away my remaining tampons and pads and stop using birth control. Here’s how hitting the big M has felt: bewildering. I mean, nothing’s changed. …

22 reasons why I love this country — Disclaimer: It will never feel right to type “I’m an American” -even though I sometimes say it. Fact: I’ve always been an American, only from South America (Venezuela specifically), just like any U.S. citizen is an American, only from North America. With that off my chest, I’ve got a second…

And how labels shape our thinking about what’s good and normal — Why do I have such a problem with my son’s autism, bipolar, and intellectual disability labels when they bring so many benefits? When Diego was a child, the autism label memorably got us a special pass at Disney World with magical line-skipping powers. Currently, the labels give him access to…

The embarrassing truth — There’s a widely held belief that the greatest perk of being a teacher is the long summer vacation. I’m a teacher and I agree. By perk, I mean tangible, measurable compensation: pay, health insurance, days off, that sort of thing. …

Hi Nation! In case you missed it, this post has unexpectedly become my best-performing one. My Son’s Disability Brought Out the Worst in Me You never know what will hit a nerve. (Also it got boosted by Medium.) This one lived in my mind for a long time before I put thoughts to paper. Hope you find death-awareness helpful too: Death Is the Ultimate Deadline Until next time, be well my friends, Dani

Though not the social media marketing type necessarily — Influence is the ability to affect someone else’s thinking. This line from the book Difficult Conversations got me to admit the following to myself: One of the main reasons I write is that I want to be an influencer! It’s also why I post and engage in social media and…

No exceptions — I was at a party recently sitting across from my sister Sandra, aka Dr. Mini, talking about this and that when, out of the blue, she said “Swallow.” From her expression, I knew she’d turned from sister to doctor. “You have a small bulge on your neck. You oughta have…

The very best in me — It’s no secret that parenting is damn hard. It brings out the worst in you and unearths some of the best a person can give. This piece is about the latter. The Patience of a Saint “Dani has the patience of a Saint,” Candy, a teaching assistant I’ve worked with for years, has said about…