Turning points

Insightful and poetic first-person accounts of turning points and transformations

Illustration of a couple holding hands walking past a giant cheque that unravels to reveal a scenic view of a bridge over a river and the Eiffel tower.
LOVE

My swindler sweetheart

I was a pushover with a habit of picking cheating men as boyfriends; then one of them pushed me too far

by Patricia Olsen

An elderly woman in a blue jacket holding a book, smiling warmly at the camera indoors.
SPIRITUALITY AND RELIGION

Converted by Sister Ruth

At a Texas convent, what could a sublimely uncouth sister in her mid-80s teach me about helping people?

by Ronald W Dworkin

Two children’s dresses lying flat, one blue the other white with floral patterns and colourful smocking.
PARENTING AND FAMILIES

The daughter I never had

I loved my three sons but still yearned for a girl. Why did this fill me with such shame?

by Emma Wilkins

People sitting by a small stream in a wooded area during daytime, with sunlight filtering through bare trees.
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE

Whispers in the wind

How I learned to hear the voice of my ancestors and speak Lenape, a language silenced for generations

Krista Nelson, as told to Dawn Fallik

A dog with a leash standing on a carved wooden bench in front of a field and bare trees under a cloudy sky.
ANIMALS

Dog day blues

We were a new stepfamily, and only the puppy was missing. With Elsa, we lobbed a grenade into the mix

by Lily Dunn

Illustration of a woman floating in space surrounded by large hands and small stars on a dark background.
ALTERED STATES

The psychic who healed me

It was just like her – my bold, dead mother – to show up in my life again. Or was grief playing tricks on me?

by Amanda Leigh Lichtenstein

A man looking through the scope of a rifle in a crowded exhibition with mounted deer heads in the background.
PLEASURES AND PASTIMES

My husband, the gun nut

Three years into a blissful relationship, my partner picked up a hobby that sent me spiralling

by Lindsey Harrington

Black and white close-up photo of a person’s arm showing skin texture and pigment and shadows; protruding ribs are visible behind the arm.
EATING DISORDERS

A ghost in limbo

Two decades of anorexia obscured who I was beneath my sickness. Then a stranger saw me

by Miranda Gold

Illustration of two people standing in a forest, at the top of a waterfall, with a dog below; money is washing away down the waterfall into a pond, as well as a car and house pictured in the pond below.
MONEY AND ECONOMICS

Money

When an investment tanked and buried us in debt, we had to face the truth of how we’d gotten there

by Carol Berkower

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Photo of a person carrying a child with blue star shorts on their back, walking on a path lined with green plants.
CAREGIVING

A sister who wasn’t ours

We were her foster family for two and a half years. We had no claim to her, but she became part of us

by Kelsey Day

A person with a backpack hiking through a dense forest towards a rocky riverbank.
DEPRESSION

In the hole

A metaphor for depression became a catalyst, and I started to reinvent my approach to suffering

by Tasha Eichenseher

Illustration of two people standing in a forest, at the top of a waterfall, with a dog below; money is washing away down the waterfall into a pond, as well as a car and house pictured in the pond below.
MONEY AND ECONOMICS

Money

When an investment tanked and buried us in debt, we had to face the truth of how we’d gotten there

by Carol Berkower

Illustration of a night scene with musicians performing, a person on a chair, a bird flying and mountains in the background.
MEMORY AND NOSTALGIA

Synchronicity

Long ago, I gave a boy a greenfinch. That moment followed me in ways I’m still puzzling over

by Katia Ariel

Illustration of a couple holding hands walking past a giant cheque that unravels to reveal a scenic view of a bridge over a river and the Eiffel tower.
LOVE

My swindler sweetheart

I was a pushover with a habit of picking cheating men as boyfriends; then one of them pushed me too far

by Patricia Olsen

A dog with a leash standing on a carved wooden bench in front of a field and bare trees under a cloudy sky.
ANIMALS

Dog day blues

We were a new stepfamily, and only the puppy was missing. With Elsa, we lobbed a grenade into the mix

by Lily Dunn

A large rock with carvings and natural indentations surrounded by green foliage.
TRADITIONAL ARTS

The lost art of making a petroglyph

Inspired by 6,000-year-old rock art in Norway, I decided to create a new carving closer to home

by Rémy Noë

A white wolf standing on a rocky surface with a grassy background, tongue out, looking forward.
HUMANISTIC AND EXISTENTIAL THERAPY

Alone with a she-wolf

Time slowed and adrenaline kicked in. The creature studied me, just another element in nature

by Melanie McGrath

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Photo of a person carrying a child with blue star shorts on their back, walking on a path lined with green plants.
CAREGIVING

A sister who wasn’t ours

We were her foster family for two and a half years. We had no claim to her, but she became part of us

by Kelsey Day

A person with a backpack hiking through a dense forest towards a rocky riverbank.
DEPRESSION

In the hole

A metaphor for depression became a catalyst, and I started to reinvent my approach to suffering

by Tasha Eichenseher

Illustration of two people standing in a forest, at the top of a waterfall, with a dog below; money is washing away down the waterfall into a pond, as well as a car and house pictured in the pond below.
MONEY AND ECONOMICS

Money

When an investment tanked and buried us in debt, we had to face the truth of how we’d gotten there

by Carol Berkower

Illustration of a night scene with musicians performing, a person on a chair, a bird flying and mountains in the background.
MEMORY AND NOSTALGIA

Synchronicity

Long ago, I gave a boy a greenfinch. That moment followed me in ways I’m still puzzling over

by Katia Ariel

Photo of a person walking on an empty city street at sunrise, casting a long shadow amidst tall buildings.
FREEDOM AND CHOICE

Jaywalking man

Even before I got hit, I’d come to find unexpected bliss in waiting at street corners

by Lawrence Everett Forbes

A large rock with carvings and natural indentations surrounded by green foliage.
TRADITIONAL ARTS

The lost art of making a petroglyph

Inspired by 6,000-year-old rock art in Norway, I decided to create a new carving closer to home

by Rémy Noë

A white wolf standing on a rocky surface with a grassy background, tongue out, looking forward.
HUMANISTIC AND EXISTENTIAL THERAPY

Alone with a she-wolf

Time slowed and adrenaline kicked in. The creature studied me, just another element in nature

by Melanie McGrath

A cyclist on a yellow bike passing a closed fast food shop with a yellow and maroon facade and a one-way sign.
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE

A detour home, through Portuguese

Losing my mother tongue was painful and humiliating. Could learning a new language help me heal?

by Frances Nguyen

A person with a backpack hiking through a dense forest towards a rocky riverbank.
DEPRESSION

In the hole

A metaphor for depression became a catalyst, and I started to reinvent my approach to suffering

by Tasha Eichenseher

A bulldozer and excavator at a quarry with a clear blue sky in the background.
NATURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Scarred

The highway I’d helped build stretched before me. For the first time, I saw clearly what we had done

by JShawn Guess

A Miami Beach police car with flashing lights surrounded by people and photographers at night.
TRAUMA AND PTSD

Gun world

Is it possible to feel grief and survivor’s guilt after a mass shooting that didn’t occur?

by Jess Keefe