My feet were trapped in the inner tube. Usually not a problem; however, it is more complicated when you are three and upside down with no one in the pool. The pool was empty for just a few minutes as everyone else stood on the cement looking the other way. I saw the side of the pool. I knew enough to try to swim there, but the inner tube that was wrapped around my little body had flipped. Now it was the possible weapon of my death.  This time we are living in often feels the same as that time I struggled beneath the water, looking for help and a way out. The side of the pool seemed so fa ..read more

Twins. Boy and girl. We have long passed the time of diapers, cribs, pull toys and all the baby-like things that seemed to cover time and space when legs were shorter and words were new. Then we advanced, quickly, to tricycles, ball toss, hide and seek and bigger toys. It was a time of shared baths and shared beds when sleepovers occurred. A time when Emma played boy things and Nolan played girl things. But time passes as to do the phases of childhood. We want bunk beds! was the cry that sprang from two children who had never had to make a top bunk nor as an adult sleep in the bottom one, ban ..read more

There are no rules that say life will be easy. I think I discovered that when all the childhood and young girl fantasies came to fruition. Marriage was hard and even more difficult the older I got. Finding oneself then combining that with someone else is truly a challenge, and there is not always a winner. As little girls, we played with our dolls and pretended to marry the most handsome boy we know. Babies. Not doll babies. Sometimes they come as a surprise. Sometimes they are sensibly planned. And with many families, they sometimes come at great expense and trial and error. But we don't get ..read more

He was one. He was the only one I remember from the days of experiencing this new thing called television. All the others were the same old white and good, while the bad guys were dark and mean. Not Hopalong Cassidy. Nope, he wore black. Of course, his horse was white, but he was dressed from head to toe in black. Black. It has been the color of evil throughout all of my growing up. Hopalong gave me a window into black being just a powerful color. for good. Black. We seem to associate dark with evil and light with good. It is an awareness that we should consider. Dark clouds tell us a storm i ..read more

With the advent of this virus, we began ordering our groceries to be delivered. The fee is nominal compared to the risk of shopping. In fact, we might just continue this from now on. Current events are changing the way we do things. My friend lives in a condo. Her daughters all live out of state. Yet they pay for many of her bills and try to help out financially. This friend has a 401k as well as owns her condo. She was talking about the things she would like to buy but is worried about the money. She is worried about the possibility of living in a senior home someday. Me: You have a 401k an ..read more

We live in a turbulent time. I just had a birthday and can honestly say that is not the only time I have said those words. Wars, riots, disease outbreaks are not new. In many ways, we have moved forward from those times, although, I say we have not moved forward enough. And in the last few years, we have gone in the wrong direction. Anger and violence, lies and deceit, hate against others seem to have finally met with a wall of people who care and want change. Count me with them. I grew up on a farm. I grew up in a white society. Never did we have minority kids in our classes. Even when the m ..read more

Oh, how I miss them. How I miss wrapping my arms around my family. This is not only a virus that takes from the body. It truly robs the heart. I have been going through old pictures, putting names on the back, so no one else will have to do the research or be in generations that don't remember. Truly, it takes me down memory lane. I find a family tree unfold that was once hidden. I look for resemblances and pictures of homes now gone. I see generations of people who barely touched, let alone hug. Thank goodness I was raised with parents who loved to hug. Of course, in this mass of several hu ..read more

Yep, I am. I first noticed it when my kids were little. At first, I was so busy trying to create the perfect life for a perfectionist husband; therefore, I had to raise perfect kids. Then one day I looked around and said, "What am I doing!?!?!?" Why am I raising kids to be like their father? Why not raise them to be kids. Uh-huh, that was the beginning. The first step in lazy. The house was a little more cluttered. Toys were not immediately put away and there might be a few dishes in the sink, but there was laughter throughout the house. I got a little lazier, but my kids got a mom. This cont ..read more

If you don't have a mother, I would stand in.  If you don't have a child, I would understand.  If you are a child, know that you are loved.  If you are a daddy mom, know that you are admired.  If you are a mother, you know the depth of love.  If you are a grandma, then, of course, you understand.  Happy Mother's Day to all of you who are blessed to have a mom, blessed to remember a mom's love, blessed to be a parent, and most of all, blessed to have know what it was like to be in your mother's arms.  Happy Mother's Day with love ..read more

Example. What a wonderful word! What an awful word! Yes indeed, one of those words with a double blade, depending on the portrayer of said example. The English language is indeed such an example. We have so many words that mean many different things but are the same: to, too, two. You know what I mean. The confusion of words and meanings must seem impossible for those who do not understand this mishmash language. But for now, 'example' is my word. From early school days, we know what an example means. Examples are shown in our workbooks and on the blackboard. Examples show us how to do somet ..read more