The house is quiet. The guests are gone. The dishes have been washed and put away. We had a respectable crowd – 45 – many of whom were my favorite people. I looked around at one point and thought, “How wonderful to have many of my closest friends all in one place!” The Open House…
Month: December 2011
Reflections on 2011
Am I the only one or did this year just fly by, blending strangely with the last two or three? It’s hard for me to even isolate 2011 in my thoughts. I may have to work backwards to have any clarity on what happened this year. First, my beloved sister-in-law Sandra died in 2011. That…
Fiction Prompt: Breaking Through
It wasn’t that she didn’t love Jacob; he just drove her crazy. He was one of those men who never said what he was thinking, but instead turned silent and stared off into space whenever he was upset. Mary said to him, “Give me something to work with here, please. I need help understanding what…
“Christmas” Night Here in Texas
We just finished cleaning the kitchen after a fun and lively “Christmas” dinner with our family, two of our nieces and our Aunt Holly. We had the usual holiday fare – except chicken instead of turkey. We actually brought a turkey in an ice chest from LA, but it was so cold coming that it…
We’ve Made It
We arrived around 10 pm this evening at our home in Texas, exactly thirty minutes earlier than my husband’s projected time. The house was lit up, the Christmas tree all set after having been put up before we left the last time. We hauled in our bags and boxes of groceries we brought from LA…
Christmas Day Travels
We are en route to Texas, just getting settled at midnight at our motel 30 miles east of Albuquerque, New Mexico. We left LA at 5:45 am, stopped at the Grand Canyon, and are now here with outside temperatures right at 5 degrees. The roads are open, but there is snow in piles that has…
Eve of Christmas Eve
It is the eve of Christmas Eve and I have never before approached Christmas from this angle. We have decided to have our official “Christmas” once we’re in Texas, so tomorrow we’re just having lasagna and salad for lunch as a nod to Christmas Eve and attend church at 5 pm. No gift exchange, no…
Christmas and the “Spiritual” Gene
We don’t have a tree yet. Is it too late? It seems a bit on the late side. When I was growing up, my mother wouldn’t let us decorate the tree until Christmas Eve. “After all,” she’d say, “Christ isn’t born until Christmas Day and there are twelve days of Christmas.” As a kid I…
Excellent List: 25 Ways to Improve Your Writing in 30 Minutes a Day | WritersDigest
25 Ways to Improve Your Writing in 30 Minutes a Day | WritersDigest.com.
Seasons of Life
I have just come from the last meeting I will serve on the governing body of my church – the vestry is what that’s called in the Episcopal church. I have served for three years – this is my second three-year stint – and I have been responsible for Adult and Children’s Education for these…
20 Minutes a Day 