Jennifer Christiansen
Bio
Animal advocate, traveler, and bibliophile. Lover of all things dark and romantic.
Stories (72)
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Capturing the Wild and Untamed
I turn and smile at my husband as we approach the halfway mark of the South River Falls Trail in Shenandoah National Park. Earlier in the day, we met a woman who said this area was a great place to spot black bears. Living in Virginia for about a year, we hiked many trails in Shenandoah. All of them were amazing, but the opportunity to see a bear evaded us.
By Jennifer Christiansen5 years ago in Earth
Moving Forward with Sharks
What’s scarier than an ocean with sharks? An ocean without them. Greenpeace During distance learning for elementary students this year, I incorporated a Would you Rather question as an ice-breaker for the start of each class. Soon, a pattern in the student’s choices emerged. Every time there was an option involving water, the students preferred the land activity, and I became curious.
By Jennifer Christiansen5 years ago in FYI
She Should Be Kissed. Second Place in Teen Angst Playlist Challenge.
The students flock into the classroom, its walls and chalkboard coated in shocking shades of pink. A freckled, redhead slumps into her seat, an empty desk with a girl in it. She scoffs at herself for thinking elementary school was harsh with kids comparing decorated paper-plate card holders to see whose contained the most Valentines. Cheerleaders parade into the class to pass out carnations, and her head drops. Her eyes run along the black and white lines in her novel, eagerly gobbling each letter and word. Over a thousand pages to devour of Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind. Not a usual choice for a teen in 1984, but she’s not a usual girl. Let the cool kids get the flowers. She’ll take a trip, any trip, out of the ordinary and into a world where she should be kissed, and often, and by someone who knows how.
By Jennifer Christiansen5 years ago in Humans
Sepia-Stained Memories . Top Story - February 2021.
Summers at the Jersey seashore were my lifeline as a girl in the 1980s, especially after my parents’ divorce that brought uncertainty and instability into my adolescent universe. Before I was born, my paternal grandparents purchased a seasonal house in Ocean City, making “America’s Greatest Family Resort” the backdrop of the best moments of my childhood. My younger sister Becky and I spent lengthy, sun-drenched summers with my father and grandmother on this island well-known for Blue Laws – meaning it was not just a “dry” town, but on Sundays you could only purchase necessities. Ocean City was known for being tame and family-friendly, especially when compared with nearby Wildwood and Atlantic City.
By Jennifer Christiansen5 years ago in Families
