Books, essays, podcast episodes, and more that I think are worth your time, plus recent cultural news that I’m paying attention to in the month of October…
I love that inviting kids with disabilities into playground design not only ensures their voices and needs are heard but also benefits the entire community:
“It turns out, company leaders say, that finding out what kids with disabilities want in a playground helps build a better playground for everybody.”
As usual, Katherine Wolf offers us a succinct and powerful truth in her most recent Hope Note:
“Disability is not a problem to be solved. It’s a prophetic witness to our common humanity.”
-Katherine Wolf, Hope Note 102
Jessica Grose highlights one aspect of President Trump’s announcement about the potential “cause” of autism. She reminded me of the long history of blaming mothers’ behavior for their children’s autism—beginning with the “refrigerator mother” theory, which claimed that cold, unloving parenting caused autism, and continuing today with our President urging pregnant women to “tough it out” through a fever rather than risk harming their unborn children.
It Was ‘Good,’ Not Perfect: I read this essay in hard copy form, and I literally took out a pen so I could circle, star, and underline things. Which meant that most of the essay ended up with some sort of notation. John Swinton has been a guide to me in thinking about disability and humanity for a long time now, and this essay about how Genesis 1-3 helps us understand creation and disability is just one more profoundly helpful exploration of these themes.
The Art of the Impersonal Essay: I don’t think I can share this essay as a gift link, but here’s the link for any of you who can access the New Yorker.
How One Man Overcame His Autism: I was a little skeptical of this conversation based on the clickbait title, and—spoiler alert—the guest who was diagnosed with autism as a child is still autistic. I appreciated the conversation, but I also wish our public conversations about disability didn’t need to be framed in such stark terms. Why can’t we understand autism as a condition that emerges from a range of genetic, environmental, and social factors? Why can’t we recognize that disability includes hardship and opportunities?
Episode #74: Amy Julia Becker & Hilary Yancey. The Rewrite Radio Podcast released this conversation we had at the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing last year.
“What does it mean to tell stories of disability with honesty, love, and care? Both mothers of disabled children, writers Amy Julia Becker and Hilary Yancey, in conversation with Dr. Kevin Timpe, explore how narratives about disability can shape identity, community, and faith. Together, they reflect on parenting, setting boundaries, storytelling, and the redemptive power of bearing witness to one another’s lives.”
Dirtbag Billionaire by David Gelles. I just finished this book about Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard. It’s intriguing and well-written, but what I loved most about it was the example of someone who is neither giving in to cultural norms nor completely distancing himself from our culture. Patagonia is a huge company that wants to help address all sorts of ecological problems. It also contributes to those problems simply by producing and selling. Chouinard holds onto his values and ideals, and he compromises those along the way. He, and his company, aren’t perfect, but they are seeking to do good. This story pushes me to think about ways I can do the same.
Ed Department Lays Off Nearly All Special Education Staff. I don’t even know what to say about the fact that our Department of Education is systematically ensuring that students with disabilities have very little recourse if their legal rights are violated. I guess for now I will simply remind us that laws and culture go hand in hand. Most of us have no power over the federal government, but we do have power within our local communities to ensure our civic life, workplaces, and schools are places of welcome and belonging for all.
OneSec. I just started using the app Onesec. I realized recently that I check email and Instagram without even thinking of it anytime my phone is in my hand. I do it reflexively, dozens of times throughout the day. I have to assume that one reason I’ve felt a little reactive lately comes from the experience of constantly checking in on things and feeling compelled to immediately respond. Anyway, this app is a way to just take a pause before reflexively opening any other app. Now, when I click on gmail, my phone prompts me to take a breath. Then, after a few seconds, I either click to enter the gmail app, or I say I don’t want to continue right now. If I do continue, I click an icon saying why I’m going into the app. So far, I’m only actually opening the app about 10% of the time. And it’s $20/year for a single user and $25 for a whole family of 5.
Podcast Episode: Put a Stop to Your Hurried, Rushed Life. I have felt way-too-busy this entire fall, so I paid attention when this podcast dropped into my feed. I listened to it, then I read through the transcript and took notes on the ways he suggests we can practice slowing down. It’s short and to-the-point and was very helpful for me.
Timberlane Students Custom-Build Inclusive Halloween Costumes for Mercer Elementary. I love so much this story of middle school students engineering Halloween costumes for elementary school students who use wheelchairs. We see an example of how communities move from spaces that tolerate disability to spaces where everyone belongs. Everyone wins. Instead of a social hierarchy with some kids on top and others on bottom, everyone is lifted up.
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