Gone are the wisdom-filled words, the gentle embraces, the fiercely loyal protectors, for we are the motherless on Mother’s Day. The safety net is no longer there, that someone who knew you and loved you more than anyone possibly could. There is no treasure trove of stories about our history, our beginnings, only endings. Now … More For the Motherless on Mother’s Day
I very rarely take two walks in a day, choosing to get my exercise in the morning when it is cooler. Yesterday was a rainy day off and on, and though I was very productive, I felt restless as evening approached. The weather cleared up and I decided to take Marley on a second short … More On Meetings of Chance
Our Christmas tree holds the stories of our lives in many ways, With many of the ornaments having special meaning to us. Dan suggested that I tell some stories connected to the most meaningful ornaments in the days preceding Christmas, wise and wonderfully sentimental soul that he is- a writing prompt that I gladly embraced. … More The Twelve-ish Ornaments of Christmas: A Mother’s Gift
Our Sunday morning began peacefully as it usually does, snuggling with the animals before getting up to start this last day of the Thanksgiving break. Dan and I had a long list of things we’d hope to accomplish; mostly we were just excited to spend the day together decorating the house for Christmas. The tree … More Unpacking Memories
I thought of my mother today, her memory indelibly etched as it is into my heart and soul. I think of her every single day, but this time two sweet memories came to me. The first came as I was cutting my toenails, as glamorous as that sounds. The last few years of her life … More Remembrances
It is so interesting where inspiration springs from; I was listening to a performance by a friend’s chamber group at the conference yesterday morning, and the text of one of the movements dealt with the trees of a person’s childhood. All of the sudden I was transported back to the old house on Westwood Lane … More The Trees of my Childhood
I woke up this Easter Sunday thinking of my mother and how much she loved to celebrate every holiday. When Easter came around, some how, some way, she found a way to get a new Easter outfit for me to wear to Sunday School, and I would wake up to a wonderful Easter Basket filled … More Easter Sundays with Heavy D
It all began so innocently- A friend asked to see a ‘before’ picture of our house after my last post, and suddenly hours had gone by as I became lost in photo albums filled with memories of all kinds. My life passing before me in the shapes of family, beloved pets, homes, vacations- pivotal moments … More Scenes from a Life
I couldn’t help myself….as we drove into our Glen Iris neighborhood in the Mini Cooper, I had to let out the “Wheee!” as Dan flew over the famous big bump. For a brief moment we were airborn, and it brought back memories of joy riding with Heavy D in my ’66 VW Bug when I … More Joy Riding with Heavy D
I was in the middle of writing a post about our Christmas late this afternoon when the tornado siren began to wail out of the blue. It is unseasonably warm for Birmingham and we’d started the day with a thunderstorm, but we had no idea the storms would become severe- not at all what … More The Memory Catcher
The View from Here 