Blog Post

What is Safety?

After I was hired for my position here in Turkey and shared my impending move with family and friends, I was repeatedly asked the following questions, “Are you sure? Is it safe there?” A former colleague inquired about my state of mental health, saying something along the lines of, “I’m worried about Heather. What is she thinking…..going to Turkey!?!” My immediate family members did not express deep concern (if they had it) but those a…

Continue reading

Blog Post

Reflecting on Relationships

It starts sometime in elementary or middle school–a romantic or more-than-friendship interest in another human being. And once it starts, it rarely seems to stop. Flirtation. Crushes. First boy/girlfriends. Unrequited obsessions. Dates. Romances. Relationships.  In recent weeks I’ve found myself in a recurring conversation. It started with my sister and best friend. In one of our daily WhatsApp conversations she commented that she’d had X number of relationships in her lifetime and reflected on their…

Continue reading

Blog Post

Stereotypes & Prejudice

I have a confession to make: I don’t watch news. In fact, I would say I generally avoid the news. If you asked me what was going on in the world these days, I would be sorely uninformed. The only news I tend to encounter is what Facebook friends mention or share, and that which shows up in my News Feed.  That is how I came upon this article recently, posted by a girlfriend, about…

Continue reading