Searching for a lost list, I unexpectedly landed in a completely different world. I found my writings after Mother died of cancer in 2010. Their raw emotion, untidied by literary rules, transported me to bloody battles with me as the enemy on both sides. Mothers’ Day falls this coming weekend. That journal resurfacing now seems …
Spring break has been rocking in our backyard. The music has been gloriously loud, so much chatter that I don’t mind being an observer instead of a participant. Just listen to the audio file above while you read. Robins dominate the crowd in number, but cardinals and other small songbirds chime in above the hubbub. …
Six hikers collapsed on the tundra. Throughout our foray winding up the mountain on switchbacks through boreal forests, munching lunch on a summit, then knee-jarring our way back down, I repeated every fact our guide, Ryan, described. He introduced us to plants and animals as he would old acquaintances, giving their names accompanied by …
LORD of Birds and Questions On my morning walk in the neighborhood, I head south on Oceola Avenue and the sun burns like a campfire on my left cheek. The low elevation of this street prevents development on three contiguous lots, so grasses sweep down from the road to the bayou, framing an inspiring view. …
I gazed over my steering wheel through swirling snow at an empty road. What a lonely stretch for my car to conk out on. A bridge bisected the highway between my growling stomach and an inn a mile ahead where a hot meal and roaring fire awaited. Last year, another traveller in a similar situation …
Toes dug in the sand, the water laps at my feet, sending chills up my back. I shuffle forward until the water reaches my ankles and suck in my breath. The beach chair and library book beckon, but the last time I came to the beach, I promised myself that I would get into the water. …
We’re still in January, and we have the whole year ahead of us. Most of us, though, stumble down the trail, because we have rocks in our shoes. Reoccurring worry over that thing, wounds with scabs that keep coming off, grudges, and regret chafe and jab into our feet. We either won’t travel far or …