Ally Higham • stillsmallvox •

Should I do it this summer? facebook.com/share/r/1CTjon…

@MKovac_Writer #1 on the menu- Take it #2 on the menu- Leave it

Curious to know, if you’d spent a couple of hours cooking up a curry for your family who are visiting from out of town and they turn up saying they are disappointed as they’d hoped you’d have made them a roast dinner instead, is this rude? Kind of wish I hadn’t bothered.

@MrPitbull07 Ice cream

For those who didn't grow up privileged, name something you thought was a luxury when you were a kid?

In the spring of 1955, a 67-year-old grandmother from Ohio told her children she was going for a walk. She didn’t say how far. She didn’t say why. She simply kissed them goodbye, packed a cloth bag with the barest essentials, and vanished into the Georgia wilderness. Her name was Emma Rowena Gatewood — and she was about to do something no woman had ever done before. For three decades, Emma had endured unspeakable violence in her Ohio farmhouse. Beatings that broke her ribs, blackened her eyes, and nearly broke her spirit. She had raised eleven children on that farm. She had finally escaped her husband in 1941, but the invisible scars ran deeper than any wound. Then one quiet afternoon, she read an article in National Geographic about the Appalachian Trail — more than 2,000 miles of rugged paths stretching from Georgia to Maine. The writer made it sound peaceful. Achievable. Beautiful. Emma thought: If men can walk it, so can I. But she knew what would happen if she told anyone. Her children would worry. Friends would call her foolish. A grandmother, alone in the wilderness? Impossible. Dangerous. So she kept her plan silent as a prayer. She sewed a simple denim bag and filled it with the absolute basics: a blanket, a plastic shower curtain, a first-aid kit, bouillon cubes. No tent. No sleeping bag. No proper hiking boots — just a pair of Keds sneakers and a cotton dress. On May 3, 1955, she boarded a bus to Georgia and began walking north from Mount Oglethorpe. Alone. The trail was nothing like the magazine promised. It was merciless. Roots caught her feet. Rocks sliced through her thin shoes. Rain turned the path to mud. Insects swarmed relentlessly. At night, she slept on bare ground in abandoned shelters, sometimes shivering too violently to rest. She got lost. She fell, twisting her ankle so severely she could barely stand. Sitting on that rock, pain shooting through her leg, she wondered if this was where her journey would end. But after catching her breath, she wrapped her ankle tight and kept moving. Always moving. Hikers who passed her didn’t know what to make of the small, gray-haired woman in a dress and sneakers, carrying a homemade sack. Some thought she was lost. Others assumed she was crazy. A few offered food or shelter. She thanked them graciously, then continued on. When strangers asked why she was walking, she’d smile softly and say she wanted to see the country. But anyone who looked into her eyes could see something deeper burning there. This wasn’t recreation. This was reclamation. Every mile was a mile farther from the life that had tried to destroy her. Every step was proof she was still here, still strong, still capable of extraordinary things. Weeks became months. Her feet bled. Her back ached. The sun burned her skin raw. But she never stopped. On September 25, 1955, Emma Gatewood stood on the summit of Mount Katahdin in Maine. She had walked 2,168 miles in 146 days. She was the first woman to hike the entire Appalachian Trail alone in a single season. When word spread, reporters flooded in. Newspapers nationwide ran her story. Overnight, she became “Grandma Gatewood,” a household name. Everyone wanted to know how a 67-year-old woman with no training and minimal gear had accomplished what seasoned hikers failed to do. Emma smiled and said it wasn’t that complicated. She mentioned the trail needed better maintenance — too many rocks, not enough signs. She spoke as casually as if discussing her garden, not surviving one of America’s most grueling challenges. But she wasn’t finished. In 1957, she walked the trail again. Then in 1964, at 76 years old, she became the first person ever — man or woman — to complete the Appalachian Trail three times. Each journey with almost nothing. Each journey proving that true strength doesn’t come from equipment or training. It comes from refusing to surrender.

@ick_real Younger than that, but one of my great-uncles is my idol. He passed away in 2024 at age 105. Most members of both sides of my family live to ages 95; 100.

When people get in their 50s and 60s and up, do you start thinking about how many years you have left? I’m curious

در حالی‌که دختران افغانستان رؤیای پزشک، مهندس، خلبان و معلم شدن در سر دارند، طالبان نزدیک به پنج سال است که حق ابتدایی آموزش را از آنان ربوده‌اند. این نه فقط محرومیت از آموزش، بلکه نابودی آینده یک نسل و جنایتی آشکار علیه انسانیت است.

Freezing hundreds of thousands of immigration application of law-abiding LEGAL immigrants because of the applicant's country of origin is discriminatory and hurts mixed-status american families and high-skilled immigrants alike. miamiherald.com/news/nation-wo…

@sanandreafault No, Twitter had no faults before.

I was there. I’m always there

@Fahimali1231 My mother learned to swim at an early age and made sure that her 3 daughters did, too. Having a parent like this is key to learning how to swim, I think.

@AllyHigham That's incredible! I wish I knew how to swim, I did try several times but never learned.

Should I do it this summer? facebook.com/share/r/1CTjon…

صوفی، ۱۲ ساله، در افغانستان آرزو دارد فضانورد شود. آیا می‌تواند به این رویا برسد؟

@Fahimali1231 Thank you!!! I learned to swim almost before I learned to walk, and love water.

@AllyHigham You'll do great!

On March 26, I spoke at @WCRAN_ORG webinar on girls’ education in Afghanistan. As a new academic year begins in Afghanistan, millions of girls remain denied their right to education. When learning is replaced with ideology, it does not just harm individuals it reshapes an entire generation and fuels extremism. Denying visas to Afghan women who earn university admission does not challenge oppression it punishes those resisting it. For Afghan girls, education is not a privilege it is their last lifeline to hope, freedom, and a future. It must remain a bridge, not a barrier. #LetAfghanGirlsLearn

@Fahimali1231 (I can try it at the deep municipal swimming pool next door first). I think that I will! Thanks for the encouragement.

@AllyHigham Yes, that looks fun, you should probably do it!

@sanandreafault @DUDEwipes Wasn't me. - The Canadian Shield

Someone needs @DUDEwipes

@shawnjvandiver Delulu

Nearly a third of the population.

With the ringing of school bells on Thursday, students across the country officially returned to their classrooms today. #TOLOnews_English tolonews.com/index.php/afgh…

@ahmadfsamin Yes indeedy. 😊

Someone: I can't sleep at night. What do you recommend? Me: Do you like reading? Person: I love reading 📖 Me: Perfect! Then I recommend a chemistry textbook. Just read one page and you'll be out like a light.

Anne Hathaway on International Women's Day 2026 | United Nations youtu.be/uidGNIp-nn4?si… via @YouTube #ImplementERAToday #ERAToday

@IsraelinUSA Shabbat shalom. 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙 ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

Israel is our home. Shabbat shalom 🤍💙 🎥 Tales of Israel

@sanandreafault PREDICTABLE. Sad. - The Huronian Supergroup

God I hate you