This Used to Be Us

by Renee Carlino

We all have a story in our head, you know? But you have to write it to actually be a writer. You have to want to write it, and you have to like it, the same way a person likes roller skating. Have you ever heard a person say, ‘I hate roller skating but I think I could choreograph it really well?’ It’s not the idea, or inception, it’s the execution.

Your education is a tiny seed. It’s a gift and if you water it, it will continue to grow…forever. The degree, the name of this fancy college printed on a piece of paper, or the job that may come along with it…those things are not evidence of a good education. Being self-aware, compassionate, humble, being able to see the world and the others in it through an unselfish lens, that’s what an educated person does. They remind themselves that they have a choice, not just to do the right thing but also to think the right thing.”

Dani and Jenna hug one last time.

I’m a firm believer in messing up your kids just enough to give them a sense of humor.

I’m a criminal. I look down at my two-hundred-dollar jeans. I’m gonna get shanked.