As the editor of Bozeman Magazine, I often outline what you will find in a particular issue, sometimes infusing my lived experiences in the Bozeman area to help identify its unique vibe; other times sharing information of a historical nature and relating it to our current-day Western lifestyle. This month, I find myself struggling with writer’s block. It is much easier to come up with content ideas for our contributing writers, who appreciate prompts or suggested topics from which to choose.

The pandemic has not been kind to my sensitive soul; kind words are at a minimum, and seemingly must be sought out. I was raised on the adage; “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all,” which I fervently observed into adulthood. I still don’t like to be unkind, but I’ve gotten a lot better at speaking my mind and letting people know what I think about certain things.

As the mother of three school-aged children, navigating the pandemic has been, quite frankly, hell on earth. We attempted online schooling last school year. Our middle child managed to make it through; for the other two it was a daily struggle, often met with tears and a lack of participation. With all three in school full-time this year, things were going well until Omicron hit. As I write this, our state has had its highest daily positive Covid test count of the entire pandemic, and my kids are back home, trying to stay caught up on school work as we all attempt to maintain our sanity.

If you’ve gained more inspiration than I have over the past couple of years and have the ability and willingness to contribute to Bozeman Magazine, we would like to hear from you! We rely on the hard work of creative locals to keep the flow of information going each month. If you are an aspiring writer and would like us to consider assigning a piece for publication, please visit our website, or email us directly at info@bozemanmagazine.com.

Let’s all be just a little more patient and a little more kind as we continue to churn through these rough waters!