My story speaks to the structural constraints on faculty members in “the sandwich generation” and on solo parents in academia. It is also the story of hard choices and toxic departments.

Although I’m technically “middle aged,” I am the child of older parents and have much older siblings. This meant that growing up, I was always acutely aware of age differences in my family and of the process of aging. As my parents and siblings have gotten older, I have found myself dealing with the difficulties of aging, even though I have been lucky not to face significant health issues due to aging myself.

…

The department chair at the time promised to support me so I could progress in my research and writing while balancing family responsibilities going forward. That was an empty promise.

…

In her final days, she confided that she felt guilty for convincing me to come back to Louisiana and ruining my career. As much as I savor spending her final years together, I admit that I consider my decision to move back to teach at LSU the biggest regret of my life. But it wasn’t her fault. I should never have been put in that position.

Read more in Anthro{dendum}.