Catapult | xtinehlee

Cover Photo: Photographs courtesy of the author

How to Be a Husband

I was husbanding—providing for my household by physically taking care of my land and livestock. And they were providing for me.

Christine H. Lee

Dec 14, 2020

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: Six beautiful vibrant chickens of varying sizes and colors tower over one another

Unlearning What the Patriarchy Taught Me About the Pecking Order of Women

In my flocks, I’ve borne witness to what I fear.

Christine H. Lee

Oct 06, 2020

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: An illustration of two figures about to kiss, in front of a window decorated with garlands and bees

How Do We Overcome Trauma?

I categorized the sexual assault under things that were my fault. “It was not that bad,” I told myself. “Others have been through worse.”

Christine H. Lee

May 04, 2020

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: A photo montage of the author's garden: vibrant and lush and full of life

Sheltering in Place in My Backyard Garden

This period of social isolation is, I’ve told my child, an act of love for others. We are, whether we want to admit it or not, part of a herd.

Christine H. Lee

Mar 26, 2020

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: An illustration of a woman watching a swarm of bees outside her hexagon-shaped window

When My Marriage Ended, I Learned to Relish the Space I Was Given

Being left behind is not a disadvantage. It is an opportunity to grow and an opportunity to live life on my own terms.

Christine H. Lee

Nov 27, 2019

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: A collage of photos of the author smiling in a beekeeper suit with hundreds of live bees in her open palms

What I Learned from the Master Beekeeper

He prefaces all his beekeeping sessions with a proposal to examine hives without gloves. It teaches a beekeeper to be more gentle. It’s easier to be gentle without gloves.

Christine H. Lee

Oct 29, 2019

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: Photograph by Andreas Schantl/Unsplash

Finding a Way Forward After Failure and Heartbreak, in Life and on the Farm

I was single for the first time in eighteen years. I felt unmoored. For the first time in eighteen years, everything was new, including me.

Christine H. Lee

Jun 18, 2019

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: Illustration by Sirin Thada for Catapult

At My Urban Farm, I’m Growing My Family and Growing Our Sanctuary

By farming, I connect back to my own culture. To, pun intended, my roots. To what it means to be a child of immigrants and help things grow.

Christine H. Lee

May 21, 2019

Columns | Backyard Politics

Cover Photo: Photograph by Massimiliano Latella/Unsplash

Learning How to Be Gentle in the Face of Trauma—Others’ and My Own

Bees do not attack—just as trauma survivors do not attack, but rather defend. She will not sting you unless she believes the colony’s life depends on her defense. Because when she stings you, she dies.

Christine H. Lee

Apr 09, 2019

Columns | Backyard Politics