Amy Kathleen Ryan's Blog

To Simone Biles

 Dear Simone,

I am not a huge fan of gymnastics. I tune in, I say, "Wow, that kid is amazing," along with everyone else. But I don't hang on it. I have no real interest in whether you compete or not. I am a mom who sees a young woman who needs help. 

Simone, you're smart, you're strong, and you're a good person. You are young. If you're done with gymnastics, then that's great. You can go to college. You can be a lawyer, or a doctor, or an astronaut. You literally can do anything you want with your...

Mr. Smith Should Go Back To Washington

            Who can forget the scene? Jimmy Stewart, his hair askew, his tie crooked, his face slicked with sweat, speaks passionately about the lack of integrity in American politics. 

            We don’t have Jimmy Stewart anymore, but the spirit of Mr. Smith lives on in America, it’s just so hard to find him because he doesn’t have to give a speech anymore. He need only shrug and say no. Nobody has to listen to him give his reasons why. Nobody has to sit through his thoughts on the American e...

What Can I Do? No more plastic shopping bags.

It's a no brainer people. Reusable shopping bags are easier to use. They carry more. They stack up neatly in the car. Oranges don't roll out of them when you turn left. And they don't end up in some poor seagull's stomach.

This link will show you how terrible plastic really is.

http://oceancrusaders.org/plastic-crusades/plastic-statistics/

The number that leapt out at me was that 100,000 marine animals are estimated to die every year from ingesting plastic.

We can do better than this.

It's not har...

Letter to my senator

Dear Senator Barrasso,How can you stand by this president? How can you support the policy of child separations at the border? How can you support an administration that perpetrates such horrors while lying to the American people about it? How can you justify this treatment of children? I cannot imagine what must be in your mind as you stand next to President Trump in all those photos you seem to want to be in. How can you sleep at night? You must stop this. There must be a moral core inside o...

What Can I Do about Climate Change? Plant a Garden!

Part of the challenge of our modern society is finding ways to feed the massive population of people on Earth without compromising the natural world. One thing we can all do, even people without yards, is grow a little bit of food for ourselves every year.

People with sunny yards where the summer is hot will have the easiest time growing food. If the summer nights are warm enough you can grow peppers, tomatoes, and melons. If you plant a fruit tree you can even have your own home grown cherrie...

New Series: What Can I Do? Plant a Tree.

So I've been thinking a lot about the state of our environment. Seems that things aren't going too well.
So instead of listing all the horrors, I'm going to write my blog posts centered around the question: What can I do?

Here's an idea: Plant a tree!

I have a big sunny back yard with a mature aspen tree that has been sending up pesky shoots. We decided to let five of the baby trees grow, and they are already over seven feet tall! Soon we will have a place to hang a hammock. More birds will hav...

What bothers me the most about the Kavanaugh hearing.

The Republicans on the Senate 
Judiciary Committee created a 
situation where we only hear from two witnesses, the accuser and the accused. The Republican majority refuses to allow for an FBI investigation before the hearing, which would be routine. Both witnesses give their testimony, then many of the Republican members announce their unwavering support for Judge Kavanaugh, and demand that there be a vote to confirm.

Why do they say they believe him and not her?
Why are they blocking...

Letter to my Senator

Dear Senator Barrasso,Since you are a medical man, I would be interested in hearing your opinion about what the immigration policy of separating young children from their parents is doing to them psychologically. Do you ascribe to attachment theory, for example? Have you ever medically diagnosed PTSD in children? Are you familiar with the medical and psychological effects of trauma on young children? If so, what do you think is the likely outcome for these children? Is their outcome unimporta...

Alcohol

A post about how a requirement of civilization could be: Alcohol. With a drugged populace it's easier to make them into serfs.www.amykathleenryan.com

Little Read Writing Hood.

Who knew there were so many wolves in children's literature?

A lot of people, apparently.

I brushed up against one wolf when he interviewed me for a teaching job at the university where I was a student. I left my one hour conversation with Mr. Wolf feeling nearly certain he'd offer me a part time teaching gig. Minutes after the interview he emailed to ask me out to dinner. I burst into tears when I read that email, then gathered my wits and politely declined, claiming I was busy.

He didn't offer...