It is mid-October. Fall is here. The air was damp and cool this morning when I took the dogs out on our morning walk. Typically it is still dark when I start out, but today I lingered over my journaling and coffee longer than usual. I wanted to give the sun a little time to raise the temperature a bit[…]
On Finding Our Things…
My little sister, Piglet, ran a half marathon today. The Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon is one of the biggest events our city has for runners. It was organized to remember those whose lives were lost in the 1995 Murrah Building Bombing, support survivors, pay tribute to first responders, and to raise money to support the Museum that has been erected[…]
On What’s In a Name?
I changed my name. Why? The first assumption made by casual acquaintances and people who didn’t know me before 1984 was that I had gotten married. “I just noticed your new email signature. I guess congratulations are in order!” But, of course that’s not what happened. I guess it would be more correct to say I changed my name back[…]
On Remembrance…
This picture is of my father, back from basic training, and just before leaving for his tour in Germany. He was a bright young man who chose to give up the last couple of months of high school (and possible jail time for a teenage prank he and some buddies took a bit too far), to serve his country. He[…]
On Mother’s Day…
Yesterday, a cashier at Home Depot handed me my receipt and said “Happy Mother’s Day.” I thanked her and said “Happy Mother’s Day to you” (or maybe Charles did). I was a little taken aback by that. I am indeed a mother. I have two grown kids and four grands. It is a role I place in high priority. But,[…]
On Living in Your Hands…
Live in your hands and your mind will learn to bow like a root. – Mark Nepo In his devotional called Live in Your Hands (Nepo), the author describes the difference in living too much in your head and not enough in the real life activity of living. He tells a short story about a man who, so distraught after[…]
On Relationship…
A simple tree by the roadside stands…
On Kittens, Anxiety, and My Relationship with Anne…
I love the author Anne Lamott. There, I said it. I do. We have not met. She does not know I love her but love her I do. She’s my writer crush, the soul mate I’ve never met. Many of us go through life with a person in mind that, should we end up single at a target age, we[…]
On My Birthday…
Today is my birthday. I’ve been dreading this one, but no more than the last one. I am closer now to 60 than ever before. I sometimes worry that I’m running out of time. Is that something other people worry about? The picture here is me at 2 months old (according to my mother’s lovely script on the back). This[…]
On the Windmills
There is something I’ve been wanting to say since the winter blast that hit the country in early February. Particularly hard hit were the southern states not used to such cold temperatures in the negative numbers. One of the biggest problems was the strain put on the power grids of Oklahoma and Texas, because neither state was prepared for it.[…]