Posts by Well-Read Mom
Efforting
Efforting written by Felicia Schneiderhan I left our meeting for So Big feeling out of sorts, a general uneasiness within. I love our group. I love what we read and our discussions. This is one of the most valuable things I do right now. But I’m never quite comfortable being a leader of a group…
Read MoreLearning to See Again
Learning to See Again Written by Naomi Ringhand We shall not cease from exploration / And the end of all our exploring / Will be to arrive where we started / And know the place for the first time. T.S. Eliot, Little Gidding Some years ago, at a Northern Minnesota parish pancake breakfast (nothing says…
Read MoreBecoming Well-Read: Entering into the Great Conversation
Becoming Well-Read: Entering into the Great Conversation Written by Molly Aranda What does it mean to be a “Well-Read Mom?” When I was first introduced to Well-Read Mom in 2017, I was intimidated by the name. As a latecomer to reading for leisure, I felt that I didn’t qualify as “well-read.” Plato? Nope. Milton? Didn’t…
Read MoreRediscovering the Feminine Genius
Rediscovering the Feminine Genius Written by Jody C. Benson About three years ago, while studying Edith Stein, a friend expressed her skepticism about the concept of the “feminine genius.” She asked us very directly, “Do you really think there is a feminine genius?” She has a true God-given gift of leading others to see from…
Read MoreReading and the Receptive Capacity of a Woman’s Soul
Reading and the Receptive Capacity of a Woman’s Soul Written by Carolyn Seida “Why do you read novels? Do they change the way you live?” My husband’s question caught me off guard. I don’t remember the answer I gave, but I kept coming back to his question. I was deep into Wuthering Heights, and this…
Read MoreKeeping Vigil: Literature, Companionship, and Grief
In June 2025, my dad, a 56-year-old healthy father of eight kids, was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. At the time, I was six months pregnant with our fourth child. My husband had lost his job, gotten a new job, and started a business all within two weeks of my dad’s diagnosis. I was feeling lost and very alone.
Read MoreLearning Happiness
After six fast-paced, exciting, and chaotic years of getting married, landing my first teaching job, welcoming two babies, completing my graduate degree, moving to a new town, and beginning a new job, a quietness settled over my life. As I looked around, I realized I had everything I once believed would fill my heart and bring me happiness: a beautiful family, a supportive community, and a job I loved….
Read MoreRediscovering the Joy of Reading
When I was a little girl, my favorite summer pastime was to sit underneath the tree that my Grandpa Harry had planted in our backyard and read a book that had been carefully selected from the children’s section of the Bexley Public Library. The sunshine illuminated…
Read MoreChristy, Then and Now
Re-Reading Christy as an adult makes me feel as though I’ve known two Christys, or two versions of the same story.
Read MoreThe Holy Work of Reading Together
During the Year of the Teacher, I found that reading with my kids taught me even more than reading with my friends did.
Read More