I am a mom, sister, daughter, friend, historian, dog lover, yogi, walker, and wannabe poet. On October 7, 2014, my life was shattered by the death of my younger daughter. Mack was just 20 and having a semester adventure in Spain. Losing her almost killed me, and I’ve been writing for my life ever since.

From 2014-2019 on this blog, I wrote about Mack, my life with her, my life without her, and my grief. From January 2020 and beyond, Being Mack’s Momma Bear is a more expansive writing space for me to explore many topics beyond my grief.

I continue to share my stories of my Mack, but I also write about my experiences with all of the beloved people in my life, particularly my sassy elder daughter Savannah. I write about books and writing, walking and yoga, flowers and birds and looking for peace. This is a space for my middle-aged self to explore the world and to better understand my place within it, including my personal and historical perspectives. I brought my old history blog, History for the Present, to live with Mack and me here at Being Mack’s Momma Bear. The world is a vast and mysterious place. To find my path within it, I study history, whether that history is my own recent past or the broader story of humanity. 

No matter the headspace I inhabit, professional historian, middle-aged single woman, or bad poet, I am still Mack’s Momma Bear. I will always be Mack’s Momma Bear. Losing Mack remade me. For better or for worse, I accept this truth, and I keep the name Mack gave me for myself and for this blog. Being Mack’s Momma Bear is where I reflect on my life, explore my human failings and triumphs, share my stories, write about history, and hopefully with a lot of grit and a little grace, serve up some simple truths about the loving, grieving, thrilling, terrifying, lonely, joyful nature of being human.