Karen Mulvahill | Author
Karen Mulvahill is a writer living in northern Michigan.
If Not Now, When?
Oct. 26, 2024
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony worked their entire lives for women’s suffrage. In 1920, 144 years after the founding of our nation, the government finally acknowledged a woman’s right to vote. Stanton had been dead for 18 years; Anthony, 14. I, too, may be ash and b…
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A Clear Choice for the Planet
July 20, 2024
Ralph believes the earth is flat. Jen thinks the moon landing was faked. Bob thinks contraception should be illegal. Amara thinks abortion is a woman’s right. Frank believes that people kill people, not guns. Rashi doesn’t understand why anyone needs an AR-15.
You might …
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What’s So Bad About Peace, Love, and Labor Unions?
May 18, 2024
Like most grandfathers, my grandpa had some great stories. When he lived in St. Louis in 1918, he watched a man light the gas street lamps every night with a long pole. His family’s first car was a 1913 Studebaker. His earliest jobs were in factories run by steam engines. And when he …
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Kudos to the Caregivers
March 9, 2024
Growing up, my younger sister and I alternated between being best friends and worst enemies—sometimes within a single hour. We fought the way two cats will, staring malevolently until one makes a move, then slapping at each other’s faces without really connecting until one turns…
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The Armchair Traveler
Jan. 13, 2024
My father led me by the hand into the dusty store lined with glass cases. The entire world was there, represented by postage stamps issued by every country in existence and some that were no more. A small man seated near the back looked up from his magnifying glass. “May I help you?&r…
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Pronouns 101
Nov. 25, 2023
My first assignment in an online graduate-level class was to provide information about my background, including my pronouns. I guess I’d had my head in the sand for a while, because I found this an odd request. Jane Doe, for example, listed she/her. John Doe listed he/him…
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Sept. 23, 2023 Poetry, literature, mythology, astrology, religion…all find metaphorical connections between the human lifespan and the seasons of nature. We are, after all, creatures of nature. Spring signifies beginnings, youth, and hope. In summer, we bloom; we discover love, vocation, and—…
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July 22, 2023 The current size of the opioid epidemic and its stratospheric growth make it likely that if you don’t know someone who suffers from addiction now, you will eventually. The opioid epidemic was declared a public health emergency by the CDC in 2017. Overdose deaths were five time…
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May 20, 2023 “We’re located in the Upper Peninsula. Do you know where that is?” the man asked over the phone. “Yes,” I responded, thinking Duh, but learning later that a lot of southeast Michigan residents have only the vaguest awareness of t…
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March 25, 2023 While sexist or racist remarks can get one fired these days, why does it still seem okay to make fun of old people? I find this especially strange because this is a demographic that every one of us—if lucky—will eventually occupy. It came to my attention when notic…
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Jan. 28, 2023 My commitment to an alcohol-free January was challenged the night we hosted dinner and friends brought a special bottle of red to accompany the bison lasagna. Threatened the night I went to a Mexican restaurant and watched everyone else drinking margaritas. Truly tested the night I went out…
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Dec. 3, 2022 ’Tis the season of magic and wonder and imagining. So imagine if you will… It’s Christmas Eve and you’re not sitting in your favorite recliner with a frothy cup of eggnog. You’re sitting in a ragged tent under a bridge surrounded by cold, damp cement a…
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Oct. 22, 2022 With an election in the offing, it’s difficult to decide what to write about. Do I write that it’s unfair that the 39 million citizens in California have the same number of senators as the 580,000 in Wyoming? Do I write about the need to eliminate the Electoral College, which ha…
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Sept. 10, 2022 Traditionally, Labor Day marks the end of summer, the time when children return to school and tourists go home and locals breathe a huge sigh of relief. Following a gloomy, sometimes grueling winter, those of us who live in northern Michigan year-round feel like we’ve earned our beaut…
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May 28, 2022 When I was a girl, I spent hours prying dandelions from our front yard. Our “grass” was actually a collection of various shades of green weeds. But when the bright yellow dandelions reared their perky heads, the green disappeared under their sunny umbrellas. My parents worked, s…
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The Seasons of Our Lives
The Opioid Crisis Isn’t Over
Get U.P. and Get Out
Ageism Isn’t Funny
Dry January
Imagine There’s No Homelessness
Voting Matters
Sustainable Tourism
Plant Native!