And Now to Write

The question "how are you doing?" is an interesting one. Wondering where am I going with that statement? Stop and think about the word "how." It is usually used when describing a process, whether it is outlining the process itself or discussing its quality. After all, the first three definitions for "how" are "in what way or manner," "to what degree or extent," and "in what state or condition" according to Merriam-Webster. Consider the structure of your own "how" conversations. When asked how a project is going, you launch into a commentary about your progress and hindrances. You talk about a process - giving some degree of background about the process itself and then evaluating it. The interesting thing is when we apply the how question to a person. We tend to give a "feeling check" as a response or choose whatever it is we want that question to refer to and answer that way. We might respond as if the ...

When encountering a Christian giving a mini testimonial, there are certain phrases you might hear. "Before I knew Christ...," "Before I converted...," "If I hadn't ___, then..." are a couple that come to mind. One time at Mass, one of these types of thoughts came out of nowhere to grab my attention: "If God didn't exist...." It's an interesting phrase. When it's used, the unspoken assumption tends to be that life as we know it would still be, well, as we know it. Maybe a couple specific tweaks depending on the argument, but at its core, the person speaking assumes existence. I know that approach has its place, but what if that thought is followed along the lines of what theists believe. Theists believe that God is the  creator of everything. So, if God didn't exist, nothing would exist. Close your eyes and try picturing that.                                             ...

As many of my close friends know, I have a soft spot for environmental concerns. Growing up, I have memories of my brother trying to insult me by calling me a "tree hugger," to which I would respond by ginning and hugging whatever tree was nearby. Being in nature is one of my happy places. When I would think of my dream home during high school, it always included woods in the backyard or at least within a minute or two's walking distance. One of my answers to "what would you do if you won a million dollars" was to buy a large piece of wooded/marsh land that is being earmarked for development and turn it into a preserve with a nature education center instead. During undergrad my love for nature took on a slightly different form. When I learned the science behind climate change and how maltreatment of the environment often disproportionately impacts the poorest of the poor, my heart was grabbed. Instead of simply enjoying nature and getting upset when another co...

Good news: I'm learning interesting things in my classes. Even better news: I'm passing some of that knowledge on to you! Don't worry, though. I'm not going to go on a vaccine rant or spew out math equations at you. I want to give you a tool of sorts that you can easily use in your day-to-day life. What is this magnificent thing I felt the need to tell you about? Well, it's nothing new. It's the question we hate getting bombarded by: "Why?" I know, this is earth-shattering. But really, this is a super helpful question, especially when asked over and over again. My professor in my social epidemiology class started our semester with this approach, and I'm going to show you via her example why I think this is so important. Her main research interest is the effects of smoking on pregnancy. Now from the outset, you're probably thinking, "This topic is pretty closed. Don't smoke while you're pregnant." Ok, well consider women who ...

If you grew up in a Jewish or Christian household, you've heard the phrase "keep holy the sabbath" before. For both religions, a big part of this is to not do work on one day of the weekend.  For Jews, this is Saturday; for Christians, this is Sunday (the Lord's Day). For the sake of keeping things easily readable and as accurate as I can write them, I'm going to continue this post from the Christian tradition.   Side note: if the difference in days piques your interest, check out this passage of a book that chronicles the history of the Christian Sunday (and partially inspired this post) or this article . From the outset, this command seems pretty simple. Don't clock in to your job on a Sunday, or if you're a student, don't do your homework on a Sunday. Of course, there are some exceptions like nurses, firemen, police officers, etc. But, for most of us, we aren't exempt from the "no work" command. I know there might not seem to be muc...

It's not uncommon to hear phrases containing the "pull yourself up by your bootstraps and just do it" mentality. The motivational "you can do whatever you set your mind to" also comes to mind. These aren't inherently bad phrases. They call out complacency and remind you that not everything is going to just fall into your lap. But, as most quick phrases go, they aren't one-size-fits-all and tend to downplay just how extraordinary such an act actually is. There's a reason why the reluctance exists in the first place, and telling someone "get up and do it" isn't necessarily going to do the trick. While a lot plays into why we can find it hard to do or be what we'd like, I want to hone in on one: norms. Frequently talked about within public health circles, I couldn't help but share it here. Now, I'm not going to take on the whole "our society is awful" approach. That isn't very tangible, and I don't know abou...

Sometimes, you hear people say they won't support a certain store because it backs an organization or promotes an image they do not agree with. Or maybe someone tries to only buy local products, or at least things that are American made. Another thing people might be conscientious about is buying clothing that doesn't come from sweatshops. All of the people who are doing these things at one point or another asked themselves this question: "What am I supporting by choosing to consume this product?"     Over the course of my college career, I've found myself asking that question in various ways. After all, that's where the question was first posed to me at a time that I felt I had the ability to act on it. While the question of support sounds pretty self-explanatory, I want to spell out what I mean by it. What we buy things from, we fund and thus contribute to their ability to stay in operation. Give them enough support, and they get the message that they...