I have just concluded one of those days that had about twenty different moving parts, ranging from packing up packages for eBay to communicating with my students for an online flash fiction class I’m teaching to having a big meeting with the contractor regarding a renovation project we are overseeing to having another meeting with…
Category: Texas
Back to the Pure Fun of Writing a Novel
I am back to working on my novel, one scene at a time. This has been an off and on process for the past couple of years, but now I am regularly putting pen to paper (yes, handwritten) and am moving forward. I have determined that handwriting my first draft produces a deeper, slower look…
Mob Mind: Never the Answer
I am reflecting on the brutal beating death that occurred in India this past week, where a crowd of mostly uniformed students gathered in outrage over the rape of a young woman and several broke into the jail where the accused was being held, dragged him out to the street, stripped him naked, and beat…
My Dad’s Comfort Food
When I was growing up, any time I didn’t feel well, my dad would make me milk toast. This consisted of toasted bread in a bowl covered in sugar with warm milk poured on top. This is pure comfort food for me. Safe, warm, mild. Reminders of my dad’s loving care. Tonight I arrived home…
My Dad, Sweet Memories on the Eve of His Birth
Tomorrow is my father’s birthday. Here is a piece I wrote about him a while back, but that still rings true for me. This provides a window into my world with him: “Have I told you today how much I love you?” This was a question my father asked me every day I was growing…
Anthology Piece Recently Published: My Mother and Her Pain
“Please don’t share our family tragedy,” my mother whispered to me while we stood in church together in Pottsboro, Texas in 1990. I understood what she was saying to me. “Please don’t tell these people. I can’t bear to deal with this now.” Tragedy was not too strong of a word. We had just learned…
Ray’s Return from Texas
Ray is arriving in just a few minutes after driving all the way from Texas so, needless to say, this will be short. I will be glad when he is home safely. These cross-country trips with only one driver are a bit worrisome since I know that on our cross-countries, I am usually the primary…
Sweetness Amid Sorrow
Twenty-nine years ago today, I was crossing the hall from the bathroom to the bedroom at my friend Patricia Butler’s house in Austin when I heard the distressed voice of a news commentator on television as he reacted to the unexpected explosion of the space shuttle Challenger less than two minutes into its launch. I…
To Elizabeth, On the Eve of Her Birthday
Tomorrow is the birthday of my beloved daughter, Elizabeth Beaty, who will be moving right up the line with the magic number 29. I happen to know that Elizabeth reads my blog, so this is the perfect spot to express my feelings without dissolving into a blubbering mess, which I would most certainly do if…
Happy Upcoming Birthday, Cousin Lee Leatherwood
Dear Lee, You have been my friend for as long as I can remember. You, who were born six days earlier than I, in the very same hospital and who lived less than a block away from me until we were five. At that point, we lived a whole five blocks away until we graduated…
20 Minutes a Day 