katelyn skye bennett

Two bluish silhouettes of drummers against a paint-splattered background

Best of 2022: Music Edition

By: katelynskyebennett 2022-12-15

beauty, Uncategorized2022, 2023, Americana, favorites, folk music, happy new year, lists, music, music recommendations, New Years, pop punk, punk music, Spotify, Spotify wrapped1 Comment

As a lover of lists and music, I’ve compiled a list of the music I loved most this past year. The music is linked to Spotify for easy listening. Let me know what you think about the songs, albums, and artists by responding in the comments! Album of the year: ‘Elsewhere‘ by Set It Off…

Author smiling a cheesy smile from the front seat of her car. The summer sun is reflected in her big, square, magenta sunglasses. Her purple lipstick almost matches them.

Evaluating my rose colored glasses

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-12-30

faith, Uncategorizedanxiety, counseling, Denver, depression, grounding techniques, journaling, mental health, Nairobi, nostalgia, rose colored glasses, suffering, therapy1 Comment

Personal reflections on nostalgia and depression.

November 29: I’m Still Alive

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-292021-11-29

Month of RejoicingAJR, Daisy the Great, depression, lyrics, Mayday Parade, mental health, Month of Rejoicing, music, music videoLeave a Comment

The morning prayer prompt today was God’s faithfulness. All I could think to say is that I’m still alive. Today’s song of the day is “Record Player,” below: Sometimes I think all I’m ever doing isTrying to convince myself I’m aliveSometimes I think all I’m ever doing isTrying to convince myself I’m climbing in the…

November 24: Connecticut Pizza

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-24

Month of RejoicingChicago style pizza, childhood friends, Connecticut, daily blog, deep dish pizza, gratitude exercise, Italian, Microsoft Teams, Month of Rejoicing, New England, New York pizza, pizza, snapchatLeave a Comment

I’m might kick myself later, but I’m eating pizza tonight. The good stuff, from Connecticut. With onions and olives and green bell peppers, because those are my favorite toppings. With the thin, doughy crust underneath, a layer of evenly distributed sauce in the middle, and the cheese that’s going to hurt me on top. My…

November 10: Birds (Makeup Post)

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-24

Month of Rejoicingair show, beauty, birds, daily blog, daily commute, dance performance, driving, flock of birds, flying, gratitude exercise, late post, makeup post, Month of RejoicingLeave a Comment

Driving to work earlier this month, a flock of birds performed an air show. They swirled in unison, black and cream bodies flying up in tight formation and spreading out as they swooped downwards. They created a pattern in the morning sky, sharing their art with those of us bound to the road. The picture…

November 23: Toothpaste

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-23

Month of Rejoicingbad weather, daily blog, gratitude exercise, Month of Rejoicing, storms, taken for granted, toothpaste electricity, tornadoesLeave a Comment

Sometimes we take the little things for granted, like toothpaste. It is always around for twice daily brushings, but when you travel and forget your tube or mistakenly assume the person you’re visiting will have extra, you realize how sorely you need it. It’s like when a tornado knocks out the power, and you suddenly…

November 22: Bird Nest Chair (Makeup Post)

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-222021-11-23

Month of Rejoicingbird nest, cousins, egg chair, family, hanging chair, Month of Rejoicing, relatives, remote work, travel, vacation, WFH, work from homeLeave a Comment

It’s Thanksgiving week, and I’m back in New England with my relatives. The cousins I am staying with today have a white dangly chair stuffed with pillows. It’s so cozy, and I feel like a bird up in its nest. I am thankful to have this time with my cousins, for accessible outlets by where…

November 11: Punk Music (Makeup Post)

Open for some piping hot news!

November 19: Work from Home

It is lunch on a Friday, almost the end of a hectic week. But today I am grateful to be able to work remotely on this velvety sapphire couch, alternative music playing sans headphones, barefoot. Working in the office tends to be more productive for me, and I thrive on the the socialization. I am…

November 16: Sleep

Sleep is a wonderful gift. It restores our bodies in ways we don’t even realize until we are burnt out. It can help increase our emotional capacity and physical stamina. The final for my current class is due tomorrow at 11:59. I’ve been working on it for the past several days, sleeping intermittently because I’ve…

November 14: Lake Michigan

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-142021-11-16

Month of Rejoicingautumn, beach, beauty, Chicago, Chicago weather, fall 2021, grounding techniques, Lake Michigan, lakefront, lakes, Month of Rejoicing, oak treesLeave a Comment

Today I called my childhood best friend, per weekend tradition, and took a drive. The lake is accessible from where I live, and no matter the time of year, it’s breathtaking. Photos never quite capture it. Lake Michigan was seafoam green. The strip of cornflower blue sky visible on the horizon, beneath the low hanging…

November 21: Affordable Gas (Makeup Post)

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-142021-11-23

Month of Rejoicingcars, gas prices, gasoline, Month of Rejoicing, road tripsLeave a Comment

Driving east, I found gas that was $3.13/gallon, and later I passed one just under the three dollar mark! That’s unheard of where I live. It’s $3.59 at the cheapest, if you drive to a suburb, and over four dollars in some parts of the city. This isn’t much of a blog post since it’s…

November 13: Bodies

I am thankful for the loving arms that embrace me when I am downtrodden, confused, and fatigued. They gently hug me hello and squeeze me in delight as well. I am thankful for the gentle hands that bought my new favorite sparkling beverage and placed the blackberry drink in the fridge to cool, the battle-scarred…

A hispanic shop displays colorful signs in its window for its products, including agua de maracuya. They are hiring.

November 7: Workplace Blessings

My workplace is collecting comments of gratitude from staff this week, and writing that email felt a lot like blogging for WordPress in this Month of Rejoicing, so I thought I’d share my response here as well. I am grateful for trusting relationships with my clients and the chance to speak Swahili with some of…

November 8: My Friend J

Habits take a minute to create, and I’m still in the process of remembering to blog daily for this gratitude practice! Today I’m grateful for my friend J, a fellow musician and brother in Christ. He works with a particularly vulnerable category of forced migrants and is not only amazing at the details of his…

November 6: Nature Walks

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-062021-11-14

Month of Rejoicingautumn, deer, gratitude exercise, hiking, Month of Rejoicing, nature, sunshine, weekend, Woods1 Comment

Today I had an unexpected tromp through the woods. Four young deer pranced across the trickling brook. Down the path and past the log cabin, a pond dazzled with sunlight, the same light that illuminated the fields of tall grass. I witnessed the biggest smile at the sight of two cows further over at the…

November 5: Honestly Not Sure

Hi friends. I’m having trouble knowing how to rejoice tonight. I am processing a lot of emotions and assessing my behaviors and responses, and despite all ways I’ve grown this past year, I still fall back on certain, undesirable patterns. Maybe like bouldering, I’ll celebrate the many good steps I’ve taken toward being a whole…

November 4: Thursdays

I am thankful for Thursdays. This quarter my grad class has taken place on Wednesday evenings. The pressure of the work week typically leads up to that moment and then dissipates. Thus, after work on Thursdays, I feel as if I can take an evening to relax. Most of my week is spent running from…

November 3: Hot Showers

Good morning, readers! Let me knock out my gratitude post before work today. This morning, I am thankful for hot showers. When my depression was at its worst and the pandemic increased isolation, they were the closest thing I had to a hug. I took hot showers multiple times a day to cope when I…

November 2: Bouldering

I recently began bouldering at a local gym. It gets me out of my head and into my body like nothing else I’ve known, and it’s exhilarating! I hate working out, but this feels more like a delightful activity than exercise. Everyone is encouraging, regardless of your level, and sending a route I’ve been projecting…

November 1: My Cat

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-11-012021-11-14

Month of Rejoicinganimal adoption, cats, fostering, gratitude exercise, journal prompt, meditation, mindfulness, Month of Rejoicing, oxytocin, pets, thankfulnessLeave a Comment

Five years ago, I did a #monthofrejoicing on Facebook, posting one thing I was thankful for each day. On November 1, 2016, I shared that I was grateful to God for potatoes, and honestly, what could be more true? This November, I aim to participate in that exercise again but on this platform. As a…

Baptism of rain on an autumn Sunday

“Remember your baptism.”

I’m not okay

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-10-22

Uncategorizedcockroaches, dry humor, humor, insects, MCR, mental health, office jobs, open letter, poetry, therapy, weekendLeave a Comment

More about cockroaches. Writing is therapeutic.

Justice for Elijah McClain

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-09-032021-09-04

race and reconciliationAurora CO, Black Lives Matter, blacklivesmatter, Colorado, Denver, Elijah McClain, grief, indictment, justice, killing, newsLeave a Comment

Elijah McClain from Aurora was the essentially the same age as our Elijah in Denver, a few miles over. They were both young and smiling Black men with loving friends and family, and given his name and proximity, his killing hit closer to home. I took this photo earlier this summer, about two years after…

Gender 101 – Using pronouns in the workplace

Hi, my name is Skye, and I use she/her pronouns.

Rejoicing at two decades of faith

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-07-022021-11-24

faithanxiety, celebration, Christianity, depression, faith, mental health, questioning, Romans 12, spiritual birthday, spirthday, the Church4 Comments

Life isn’t always easier as a Christian.

Join our World Refugee Day Chicago 2021 events now!

Join the celebrations 6/16 and 6/19/2021!

Dream concert lineups

*swoon*

If I were a mythical creature…

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-05-052021-12-30

beauty, Memoirs of the Treesbeauty, Connecticut, dryad, ecosia, environmentalism, forest, Greek mythology, hamadryad, magic, mythical creatures, oak tree, trees, wood nymph, WoodsLeave a Comment

At my office’s Christmas party this drizzly December, I wore a deep green t-shirt and placed a fake red rose behind my ear, as that was the most festive attire in my wardrobe. When asking if I looked festive enough, someone replied that I looked like a woodland nymph. How delightfully accurate! As a mythical…

A yellow NSVRC banner with a teal ribon reads, "April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month."

Sexual Assault Awareness Month – resources

TW: Sexual assault. (Awareness and survivor assistance resources in post.)

A residential street lined with snow-dusted deciduous trees.

Reveling in the snow

I found Stillness for a moment. She had such a calming presence.

The Little Pinecone

By: katelynskyebennett 2021-01-30

Memoirs of the Treesapartment complex, Denver, faithfulness, God, goodness of God, hope, pinecone, resilience, symbolismLeave a Comment

It was my fruit that gave her hope. I dropped it for her that summer day on Asbury Avenue, there on the rutted sidewalk between the small houses, the ones with their driveway folding chairs and roadside recycling bins, and the four sets of apartment buildings toward the end of the road. That’s where she…

Let me brag on my huge, supportive family

We will always be there for each other at a moment’s notice, and we will always welcome others into our family when they need a place to belong.

The beauty of the sacramental Church

Every Sunday, I am reminded of Christ’s love for me through the Body, broken for the forgiveness of sins. In the bitterness of the wine, I taste his agony in his blood shed for me.

Saturday night thoughts on war

God, I love Catholic Social Teaching. Imago Dei, man. But just war? Nah, I’ll stick with the Anabaptists on that front.

Calling out America’s idolatry of work & the need for rest

Yes, we value hard work as Americans, but is it possible we value work TOO much?

The Christian faith, exemplified by Saint Vincent

“We must love our neighbor as being made in the image of God and as an object of His love.” -St. Vincent de Paul

This week is racial equity week in Chicagoland

Want to be involved in this week’s racial equity events? Here’s how!

Intersected | What is equity?

By: katelynskyebennett 2020-08-312020-08-30

Intersectedequity, Intersected, new website, racial equity, subscribe, transition, welcomeLeave a Comment

Hey folks, Intersected has grown large enough to merit its own site! We have transitioned over to our new website, intersectedproject.org! If you were following my personal blog here for the sake of that racial equity project, please join us over there as well! I’ll wait. You can look us up there and subscribe. 😉 …

Intersected | Reflections on the Protestant Church’s dealings with race

Here our team writes on its experiences in the Black, mainline, and evangelical American Protestant Church. 3, 2, 1, Engage.

Intersected | Chicago, a house divided

By Sophia Porter Growing up, I came to know two cities less than 1.5 miles apart. I spent every summer of high school at a desk in an apartment building on 45th St. & Greenwood Ave. The garden unit served as the site office for my parents’ business. My parents develop and manage affordable housing…

Intersected | I, too, am justice: Life as a disabled Latiné

When we fail to recognize that disability is integral to this ongoing conversation, we fail to come up with creative and effective preventative solutions.

Intersected: life chances of Black African refugees in the U.S.

This week’s post focuses on the life chances of Black African refugees in the U.S., taking a look at the labor market, how knowledge of the English language plays in (you’ll be surprised!), and what an appropriate faith response might look like.

The Ideal Inspiration Blogger Award

What an honor! Brendan Birth at Blind Injustice nominated this blog for the Ideal Inspiration Blogger Award because of this site’s racial equity project, Intersected. I highly recommend checking out the repost of his nomination and reading the other bloggers he mentioned who are doing similar work! He asked a few questions, which I will…

A Blog Award: Repost from Blind Injustice

By: katelynskyebennett 2020-07-212020-07-21

Intersected, Uncategorizedaward, blog award, blog post, honor, Intersected, race, repost4 Comments

I am honored to be nominated by this fellow blogger and thankful to the Intersected team for producing such great content. To read Brendan’s original post and get connected to other blogs on racial equity, read on! During my two-week hiatus from blogging, I was nominated for the Ideal Inspiration Blog Award by Em at…

Intersected: housing discrimination in Chicago

By Sophia Porter Over the past couple months, income inequality between Blacks and their white counterparts has been at the forefront of conversations about racial inequality on the national stage. The figures are staggering, prompting a myriad of questions. One that’s particularly close to my heart relates to housing. Can we fully take into account…

Intersected: From food justice to veganism

Veganism and plant-based diets are often advertised as part of both a crunchy and upper class white lifestyle, but is this accurate? And is it even attainable if I want to eat more healthfully? Welcome to Intersected! I, Skye, eat very plant-based, and while I cannot claim to be vegan at this point, I have…

The Three Tree

By: katelynskyebennett 2018-08-282021-12-30

Memoirs of the TreesAlgonquian, Connecticut, forest, Hardy Boys, Native American, North Haven, oak leaves, oak tree, red oak, Tree2 Comments

We were childish, and it was happy. The Three Tree was childish itself, though not spry like us anymore. Age had made it firm but had not worn down its spirit.

13 reasons why… someone might not want sex

The last one is key.