Real Academics Blog

Dear Real Academics, We are back! We hope all of you have found some amount of time to rest and reflect and find peace during this time of year. Thank you for your continued readership support. And welcome to the newcomers this year! Your continued support and sharing of this resource with others is so important, and we thank you. This week I am sharing a picture of Dr. Garza and myself at the Hoover Dam. The Hoover Dam lies between Nevada and Arizona and was built during the Great Depression (i.e., the 1930's) in the United States. If you are ever in Las Vegas, we highly recommend you take the official "Dam Tour" and learn more about it. (And, yes, the tour guides will endlessly play on the word "dam" throughout the tour...dam tour, dam tourists, dam t-shirts...you get the idea).  The dam may not look as big as modern dams in other parts of the world, but for the time it was built and in the way in which it was built, the Hoover Dam is simultaneously a business

Dear Real Academics, In Mexico, where my parents and my husband's grandparents grew up, El Día de Los Reyes Magos (The Day of "Three" Kings) is on Jan. 6. On this day, children receive gifts and families gather around and eat a special bread called La Rosca de Reyes (The King's Wreath), usually with some steaming hot chocolate. The tradition comes from remembering when the wise men from the East saw a star and followed it to Jerusalem. There, they looked for and found the child Jesus and presented Him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh and worshiped Him. Those interested can read the account in Matthew 2.  So, when I see old photographs of my parents as children at Christmas, they are not sitting on Santa's lap but standing in front of  Los Reyes Magos . In  honor of our families tradition, then, Tiberio and I took a picture with the Kings of the East after the spectacular Living Nativity performance put on by the church we attend. What does any of thi

Dear Real Academics, Tiberio and I have a 2-year old "puppy" named Rocky. In this week's picture, Rocky is experiencing his first-time-ever small-town Christmas parade. Rocky had never seen a horse or a goat or a marching band or floats decked out with lights. So, when I saw him sitting so attentively and curiously looking at the parade, I had a sudden sense of awe myself thinking of what it must be like to experience something for the very first time.  As a writer, there is a part of me that needs and longs for awe and wonder. I find that I can revive that sense when I slow down, and I'd like to share some thoughts as to why this may be. In doing so, my goal is to help you (and me) with inspiration for writing and work. Slowing down can inspire my sense of awe and wonder by: (1) Allowing me time to be grateful. When I slow down, I can more easily appreciate what is in front of me instead of thinking about what I need to do next or ruminating on the past (which, unfor