Essays

Harvard Graduation — A Love Story

A Note from Hope, publisher, Inkandescent Kids magazine — It has been a year since I watched my son Dylan walk across the graduation stage at Harvard in May 2025. And what a year it has been! In August, he landed his first big job at the New York City-based architecture firm Thomas Phifer and Partners. On August 8, I launched Inkandescent Kids magazine.

So it’s only fitting that we host a giant first birthday celebration! Please mark your calendar for August 8, 2026, when from noon to 4pm at Elaine’s Literary Salon in Alexandria, VA, we’ll be bringing more than a dozen children’s book authors in to share their work. We’ll also be featuring student musicians and artists — and there will be a photography booth with our Inkandescent videographer and photographer Anna Gibbs, craft projects, and a buffet of delicious kid-friendly food from Elaine’s restaurant. We can’t wait!

About Elaine’s: I have the privilege of running the Salon with my business partner,

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November 2025 — We give thanks this month with “Nonviolence,” an award-winning essay by high school student Shay Jackson entitled, “Living the Dream”

A Note from Shay Jackson, from her essay, “Nonviolence” — There have been many successful nonviolent movements throughout history. One of the most well-known was the Indian Independence Movement, led by the notable Mahatma Gandhi, another famous civil rights activist. The movement used nonviolent resistance to end British colonial rule in India. Another important movement was in the United States, with leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., who advocated for racial equality. They used peaceful protests and civil disobedience. Another nonviolent act was the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia, where the Czechs used nonviolent protests to end Communist rule. These movements show the power of nonviolence. Nonviolence is a significant movement to change.

“Change is Normal: Part 2” by Timothy Trainer, IP attorney and author

“A simple question that is often asked is one of the most difficult and puzzling for me,” says IP attorney, author, and proud Army Brat Timothy Trainer. “What’s your hometown (a different version of this is: where did you grow up)? Hmm, that’s a good question. How should I answer that? I used to hesitate before answering. It took many, many years, meaning decades, before I settled on a pat answer that never explained very much. I would answer by saying that my father was in the military, so we moved a lot.” Read more about it!

Change is Normal: Part 1, by Timothy Trainer

IP attorney, author, and proud Army Brat Timothy Trainer says of his time growing up in the military: “Every place we live is temporary. Every school we attend is temporary, which means we have friends for short periods of time. In our environment, our friends drop into the neighborhood and school from different places. It’s possible that the new kid arriving mid-semester on a Wednesday might have just come from Germany, Japan, or Italy. It’s also possible that they just moved from Texas, California, Missouri, Kentucky, or one of the Carolinas.” Read more about it, and don’t miss Part 2!