On my morning walk today, suspended between a storm front over the Sierras and a bank of gray clouds from the Pacific, I marveled at the sky. I wish you had been here to see the ever-changing landscape of the clouds painted by the wind, the sun slowly seeping over the darkness to the east.Continue reading “Wish you were here”
Tag Archives: Reflection
Book Life
I almost got in trouble for reading too much when I was in nursery school at Washington State University where my parents taught. The school had student teachers whose job it was to observe children’s interactions. After I had been there three weeks, the head of school called my parents. She gravely informed them thatContinue reading “Book Life”
Autumn leaves
Today as I raked leaves in the front yard, my neighbor and his little girl came out of their house, the girl holding a giant bag nearly as big as she was. “I want red ones and yellow ones and orange ones…” she said. I knew exactly what they were doing. Fall has always beenContinue reading “Autumn leaves”
The nature of things
Words can’t explain it: Sky, tree, river, valley, mountain. I pen letters in packages Of three, four, five, six, seven, Yet they fail to adequately capture Wonder A universe that lies within Stars, soil, atoms, quarks, Things yet to be uncovered. But the insufficiency of language Will not prevent me From attempting to express TheContinue reading “The nature of things”
Coyote
Between dark and light, As the owl sings its melancholy melody, You appear. First formless, Then my eyes discern your shape, Gray against gray. I freeze. You still. Our gazes lock. I wonder at your lush tail, your vulpine visage. You size me up, ready for a challenge. Something wild and untamed moves within me.Continue reading “Coyote”
Lessons learned while washing dishes
In the 1980s, while I attended a small liberal arts college in the Midwest, I worked at the dormitory cafeterias. I held a variety of jobs, from serving students food at lunch to replenishing donuts for brunch to working on the dishwasher line. On the dishwashing line, my fellow students and I sorted out theContinue reading “Lessons learned while washing dishes”
The feather
Dear Bird, I found your feather today on my walk Lying against the crisp brown late-summer grass. I wonder: Did you pluck it purposefully from your skin, Because it had lost its usefulness? Or was it torn from your wing in a dispute With another raptor? Did it shake loose in a tussle With yourContinue reading “The feather”
Tangled
I knit, which means I spend a lot of quality time with yarn. A lot of yarns come in skeins, which are strands of yarn looped together in a loose coil. These large loops become easily tangled, so knitters often use a yarn winder, a device with a handle that you can crank and aContinue reading “Tangled”
A writing life
My junior year of high school featured a huge disruption that would change my life moving forward and inspire a habit that stays with me to the present. In 1982, my mom, dad, sister and I traveled from Pullman, Washington, to London, England, where we lived for a year while my parents took a sabbaticalContinue reading “A writing life”
Tending a Garden Through the Years
In my youth, I fantasized about living off the land, planting, growing and consuming all of my own vegetables. I knew almost nothing about gardening, and as I began to try this activity, I questioned whether my childish dream would ever happen. I questioned this especially in the mid-1990s when I met Austin Springston, aContinue reading “Tending a Garden Through the Years”
Things I've Learned Along The Way 