I got mail from Iowa this week. When I opened it, this picture fell out, with a note from a friend of my parents. Martha reads the blog. She loves the posts about family, so last week was a good one for her. She has a lot of memories of the bird in the pocket. I… Continue reading The Bird Returns
Uncle Bird
My father always had a bird in his pocket. No, of course not really. What a mess that would be. Still, all my life, I remember children running up to him and with arms over their heads, waiting to be swooped up onto his hip, and shrieking to see the bird. In the last years… Continue reading Uncle Bird
The Case of the OSU Cane
I sat by Mary at my nephew’s graduation party. She had brought her mother-in-law Betty; Betty had been a neighbor to my nephews since they were born. She drives some, but the kids and in-laws and grandkids go with her when they can. She’s 91, and everybody just feels better if there’s someone with her.… Continue reading The Case of the OSU Cane
Surprises
I inherited neighbors when I got married. They're sisters in their eighties. They are garden queens. Less than they used to be; it's a lot of work. But Garden Queens, man. They had a huge vegetable garden. We got gifts of lettuce and peppers and I don't even remember what else. And the flowers. They… Continue reading Surprises
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!
I entered a contest a few months back. I picked through my essays from last year, chose the best ones, pressed the upload button and promptly forgot about it. I didn’t have any expectations. I’ve entered a number of contests, mostly with no results, and this was a national one, with people submitting from all… Continue reading Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!