If You Know Anybody Who Needs a Writing Coach…

Hi everyone, I would appreciate it if you would pass my contact information on to your friends and family who may need the help of a writing coach in the upcoming months. Since my own children have graduated from school, I no longer have the constant contact I previously had with the school districts. So,…

The Right Way to Say Good-bye

“This old dog won’t hunt much longer,” my father said on that Friday evening I came home from the University of Texas to see him. I knew exactly what he meant. “No, Daddy, that’s not true.” Tears flowed down my cheeks. He lay propped up by pillows in bed, the sheet drawn up to his…

A Little Bit of Heaven: Our Orange Grove in Ojai

We have made two trips to Ojai this week to our orange grove. Just a few photos to share since I am VERY tired tonight after working there today. Our Agave Plants The Fire Ring and Sitting Area Our New Orange Crop Rachael Raking Amid the Trees We went to the orange grove on Tuesday…

Why I Write…

I periodically have to remind myself why I write. Tonight is one of those occasions. It certainly is not for the money, by the way, or the fame. So, why do I write? Let me think about that question for a minute. I write because: 1) I often express myself on paper better than through…

A Letter to Luna about Her Mom

Dear Luna, I want to tell you a few things about your mom. Tomorrow is her 31st birthday and you will be exactly 5 weeks and 6 days old. I think there are a few things you should know about this person who pushed you into this world on April 4, 2013 at 10:04 pm….

Heat with No Breeze

It was hot today here in LA – 103 was what the thermometer read in my daughter’s car. At 9:08 pm, it is still hot in the house, and we have every window open downstairs and up, every door open except the front one, every fan on. We only have air conditioning in one room…

Tired, but Happy

I am very tired after a long, but wonderful day. Sweet Liz and Ron graduated this morning from Southwestern Law School with the ceremony held at the Shrine Auditorium. Friends and family were there for the celebration. This is my great niece and nephew, Sophie and Eli, holding granddaughter, Luna. Rachael, Sarah and Gregorio Ray…

Thank You, Mom

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day and I am sorry that my mother – Helen W. Leatherwood, Ph.D. – will not be present to see her granddaughter, Elizabeth, walk across the stage to receive her Juris Doctorate from Southwestern Law School. I will feel this way again next month when Rachael receives her Bachelor’s degree from UCLA,…

Graduation Day

This is a graduation weekend here at our house. Our daughter, Liz, and her boyfriend, Ron, will graduate from law school on Sunday at 10 am. They will walk across the stage at the Shrine Auditorium to receive their JD degrees after completing a rigorous accelerated 2-year program. Our nephew from Utah, Jim, his wife,…

A Few Glimpses of Childhood in No Particular Order

I remember: Warm pavement under my bare feet Doodle bugs tickling my arms Train whistles in the distance My father’s biscuits and gravy My mother’s typing The smell of chlorine at the pool in summer Chicken and dumplings Incense at church Freshly mown grass My dad’s old farm truck My Uncle Doc’s café My Uncle…