‘Our family trip to Yosemite has given me access to places I subconsciously felt weren’t home to me.’
Essays
Posted inMarch 1, 2023: Moving Parts
Luck and life in pronghorn country
‘Since I was a little girl, on the first day of every month, the first words out of my mouth are rabbit rabbit.’
Posted inFebruary 1, 2023: The Reveal
Foods harvested throughout the seasons make up a wintertime meal
An Inupiaq writer describes the fellowship and delight of a Native supper.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2023: Ripple Effects
Growing up queer in Colorado Springs
In the wake of the Club Q mass shooting, reflections on an adolescence in the ‘Evangelical Vatican.’
Posted inDecember 1, 2022: Beyond Illusion
Rooting a new life under a juniper tree
‘Trees know about belonging.’
Posted inDecember 1, 2022: Beyond Illusion
What emerges at low tide
Queer history is all around us, even if it is obscured from sight.
Posted inDecember 1, 2022: Beyond Illusion
Making Christmas cake in Compton
Reviving a family tradition eases holiday grief.
Posted inNovember 1, 2022: The Futures of Conservation
Antidotes for ecological forgetfulness
Bear witness, make a record, pass it on.
Posted inOctober 1, 2022: Making Refuge
A family works together to fill the freezer for another year
In Alaska, a fall moose hunt is a collective effort.
Posted inSeptember 1, 2022: Going Under
On the road, a taste of home
The Saini family’s Punjabi dhabas serve ‘good vibes only.’
Posted inSeptember 1, 2022: Going Under
The anxiety and satisfaction of race day
A writer traces the motivations that led her to run a half-marathon on the California coast.
Posted inJuly 1, 2022: Living with Rivers
Getting over not fitting in
Why I have a jackalope tattoo, and another of a covered wagon.
Posted inJune 1, 2022: A Legacy of Weapons and War
How cooking, eating and harvesting beach greens ties a family together
An Inupiaq writer remembers her family roots through a favorite dish.
Posted inJune 1, 2022: A Legacy of Weapons and War
How to choose a pronoun
The land does not care what parts of you are male or female.
Posted inMay 1, 2022: New Ways of Seeing the West
From river bottom to meadow
A runner in Ojai, California, considers how access to public space isn’t necessarily a given.
Posted inMay 1, 2022: New Ways of Seeing the West
What does it mean to live well on an overheating planet?
A walk through the Quinault rainforest leads to a cascade of questions.
Posted inApril 1, 2022: The Archives Issue
My archive: 20 years of Los Angeles’ LGBTQ+ movement
Between 1978 and 1998, Lydia Otero built a collection around queer activism in LA.
Posted inMarch 1, 2022: The Cloning Conundrum
Hate speech on the Bitterroot
How a day on the river made me question my relationship to a place I call home.
Posted inMarch 1, 2022: The Cloning Conundrum
When the little owl vanishes
A writer reflects on parenthood and what to talk about when confronting extinction.
Posted inFebruary 1, 2022: Essential
Rekindling connections in the small flame of a qulliq
An Inupiaq writer welcomes the nourishing glow of a seal oil lamp into her home.