Family and Friends

Saving the Farm

On July 5, 2022 / Family and Friends, My Land and Home / 28 Comments

In July 1972, they moved with their baby boy to a crumbling farmhouse on a dirt road and immediately got to work. She cleared cobwebs in the cellar while he made shelves from old barn boards. Like

Insider Rewards, Outsider Blues

In Mexico, Missouri where Dad had gone to high school and Grandpa was a Friday regular at the Jefferson Hotel, I was an insider. Daddy knew everyone and, as far as I could tell, everyone loved him.

Wings to Lift the Spirit

On April 12, 2022 / Family and Friends, Nature / 14 Comments

“What do you want to do when you visit, Mom?” I don’t hesitate. “Let’s go to the Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory. I haven’t been there for years.” My son David laughs. He knows I love butterflies, and

When Strangers Become Family: Dreams, Synchronicity, & AncestryDNA

On March 29, 2022 / Family and Friends, Psychology and Mythology / 32 Comments

Two days before my dead husband Vic’s birthday, I received an email from a stranger in England. Kel Mansfield had found Vic’s first cousin in Canada through AncestryDNA, and she told him about Vic. After looking at

A Child’s Awareness of the Secrets of Death

On March 15, 2022 / Bereavement and End of Life, Family and Friends / 17 Comments

Daddy was sad and quiet. Mommy cleared her throat and dabbed her eyes with a tissue. Uncle Jim and Aunt Martha arrived without my cousins. I was 9 years old and soaked in impending doom, but no

The Mystical Magic of a Waterfall

On January 4, 2022 / Family and Friends, Nature / 18 Comments

My son David arrived from his home in North Carolina a few days before Christmas. We’d planned good food, mellow vibes, and hikes. Two years of Covid made visits rare, so it was a gift to be

Winter Dreams of Love and Loss

On December 21, 2021 / Bereavement and End of Life, Family and Friends / 16 Comments

I dream I’m searching for healthy food in a large cafeteria, but can’t find nutritious food or even green tea and feel confused and lost. I turn around and my dead husband Vic stands facing me, masked

Like a Cowgirl: A Child’s Holiday Hope

On December 7, 2021 / Family and Friends / 14 Comments

I know what I want for Christmas. I want to be a cowgirl just like Dale Evans. I want boots, a vest with tassels, and a cowgirl hat. I want a horse like Buttermilk. Creamy, gentle, a

Six Generations of Resilient Women

On November 23, 2021 / Family and Friends / 22 Comments

Who were these stern faced women dressed in black? Did they find joy in marriage or in staying single? Were they worried at night about their children and the crops? Did they write letters to family left

The Great Mother Made Peach Ice Cream

On August 31, 2021 / Family and Friends / 21 Comments

With the constant anguish of collective life from covid, climate change, racism, and war, I call on the Great Mother to be with me and comfort me. This week, she appeared–not as a winged Goddess from Greece,