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Artful Academics: The Contour Lines of an Idea
By Brandy Renee McCann My partner observed me struggling through a tutorial on botanical drawing and asked, “Why draw when you can take a picture?”. I looked at the potted aloe plant in front of me and compared it to my drawing. There was a resemblance, but it is safe to say that sketching isn’t…
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Artful Academics: A Sermon and Prompt for An End Time
By Brandy McCann The world is changing. The wheel is turning. The tower is crumbling. It’s post-pandemic; it’s the dismantling of the old patriarchy; it’s little and big resistances to the-way-things-were everywhere. These are exciting times; these are scary times. We’ve been wandering around in the wilderness for nigh on 40 years now, and sometimes…
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The Artful Academic: Writing Unspeakable Moments
By Brandy Renee McCann Dissociation is a common experience among those of us who’ve experienced trauma. We’ve all experienced mild out-of-body experiences where we lose touch with the present moment—for example, zoning out during a conversation or binging on a TV series to get respite from a stressful period. Even intensely positive experiences can lead…
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Artful Academics: Calling My Energy Back
By Brandy Renee McCann I light a small candle while nodding to my grandmothers whose faces smile out of framed pictures displayed on the table that serves as my home altar. Words of prayer and whispered gratitude are my offering along with some candy. Also on the table are nature treasures given to me by…
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Artful Academics: On Entering the Conversation
By Brandy Renee McCann I sat in the front row and waved my arm. I just couldn’t wait to share my opinion in class discussions. Hardly had another student began expressing themselves when my arm shot up with a half-baked reply. I had something to say and I wanted to say it as soon as…
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Artful Academics: On Methods
by Brandy Renee McCann Among other hobbies, my stepdad, a teacher in our small community in West Virginia, had a side gig as a flea market entrepreneur—think Billy Ray Cyrus t-shirts and clip-on fans. For a number of years flea market paraphernalia was stored in the Book Room. When it was not needed as a…
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Artful Academics: On Relational Confluence
by Brandy Renee McCann I’m at my desk in the basement of an old brick house on campus reading through transcripts of interviews with older adults. I focus on the text and ignore the Jacob Marley hiss and banging of heated air moving through the ancient pipes in the building. My work is listening for…
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The Curse of Clumsy
Creative Nonfiction by Brandy Renee McCann I break things. The handle off my favorite coffee mug. The zipper of my fancy purse. I have broken the hearts of people who care about me. Just last week, while finishing a cup of sleepy tea, I knocked the teapot with my mug. Tink! I looked down and…