Lena Garrison is a biologist, poet, humorist, and storyteller whose work exists at the crossroads of science, memory, and the human heart. Trained in biological anthropology and evolutionary anatomy, she earned her doctorate studying the changing blueprints of marsupial and primate bodies and has spent more than thirty years teaching college biology. In the classroom, she makes evolution and physiology engaging through storytelling—encouraging students to view the world as a series of interconnected stories written in bone, lineage, and lived experience. 

As a writer, Lena delves into the inner worlds that science can’t measure: grief, resilience, identity, and the subtle ways we learn to mend what breaks. Her poetry and nonfiction draw inspiration from the natural environment, the architecture of childhood rooms, and the fault lines that shape a life. Whether she is exploring the contours of loss, contemplating the emotional labor of teaching, or highlighting the small moments that lead us toward hope, her work combines emotional honesty with a biologist’s eye for pattern and detail. 

Guided by the creative spark of ADHD and the introspective perspective of an INFP, Lena approaches the world with curious restlessness. She journals, kayaks, bird watches with her wife, plays guitar and recorder, experiments with watercolor, and follows whatever new craft or instrument calls her—African drumming one season, fiber arts the next. These practices, like her writing, serve as ways of listening: to nature, to memory, and to the changing seasons of life.

Across genres, Lena’s work invites readers into spaces of reflection and connection— places where grief can transform, stories can heal, and even the tiniest shimmer of warmth can become a gateway to light.