Sitting in the surgical room, waiting for a minor outpatient procedure, I try to redirect my sense of dread by listening to the nurses chatting: “The knees, they’re the most unforgiving body part.” “How about the uterus? The uterus is a vindictive organ. You mess with it and it’s going to fight back.” Immediately I … Continue reading Happy place
Last year on this day, I wrote about being St. Patrick’s granddaughter. My grandfather, born in 1906 in the far reaches of Beaufort County, North Carolina, was named Columbus St. Patrick. (Read the post if you like). You’d think our family would be Catholic, celebrating this day with the best of them, but we aren’t … Continue reading Happy St. Patrick’s
I was sixteen years old the first time I went to New York City—that’s the same age, according to his own writing, that St. Patrick was kidnapped in Britain and carried to slavery in Ireland. I didn’t know this fact at the time. I arrived in the city that long-ago day with my high school … Continue reading In the name of St. Patrick
As a follow-up to yesterday’s post, Exploring mysteries, here’s a list of questions that have magically appeared in my supposed-to-be-empty WordPress blog posts this month: What is one thing that you would change about myself? What are five things you’re good at? Do you have a favorite place you’ve visited? Where is it? What big … Continue reading Mystery prompts…
Happy National Poetry Month! At Ethical ELA, Bryan Ripley Crandall kicks off VerseLove by inviting teacher-poets to compose acrostics: “Think of your person, place, or phrase. Lay the letters onto the page as if fallen leaves. Game-on. Write as if you are ‘gifting’ to another, and use each letter to craft an original poem.” I … Continue reading Sunflower acrostic
Some people call it one word. Others call it one little word, abbreviated OLW. Either way it’s the tradition of choosing a focus word for a new year. Maybe even a new word for each month. Make of it what you will, how you will, the chosen word serves as a tool for reflection, a … Continue reading 2021: A year of awe
Every December I open the small cardboard box, remove the pin, and place it on my winter dress coat. This is the fifteenth year. The box is now timeworn but the little poinsettia still sparkles like it did the day I bought it. There it was, right by the checkout counter where I purchased black … Continue reading The pin
A Spiritual Journey Thursday offering While walking with my son this week, out of nowhere a shape descends upon us… A dog. Not just any dog… A pit bull. Wriggling all over for joy, jumping up as if he knows us. Begging to be petted and to play. Glossy back coat, merry eyes, laughing face … Continue reading What is virtue?
Late June afternoon on the porch. A long-settling stillness, the day’s brilliance deepening to amber, shadows slanting across lawns and pavement, a cool pre-dusk breeze riffling trees and wind chimes, carrying the sound of a child calling in the distance. It’s not a child; it’s a little goat from a neighbor’s pen, hidden in a … Continue reading Out of the shadows
She comes into the house, suitcase in tow, little face aglow at spending a couple of nights while her parents keep doctor’s appointments. She hugs them good-bye and before they’re halfway down the sidewalk, she grabs my hand: “Franna, want to play with me?” Isn’t there only one answer to this question? “Of course! What … Continue reading Preparing
lit bits and pieces 