Here Comes Another One!

Dear faithful friends, resplendent readers, and those who happened here because they inadvertently clicked on something, It’s been a while since I’ve written. Too long, perhaps. By way of explanation, I haven’t felt that I had much to share. Of course, yes, my life has radically changed. There have been uphill days and downhill ones. …

Sometimes, all you need to do is close your eyes.

Today must be a “working on the book day” she told herself even though she was chock-full of doubt. She didn't really want to visit her made-up friends, pretend friends who had big, lively lives full of the things she found lacking in hers. Still, she was determined to snap out of her funk and …

Extending compassion…

I’ve had the craziest, counter-intuitive, are-you-kidding-me?, feelings the last couple of days, ignited, most probably, by the brutality unfolding under our noses. At times, I also feel guilt at my privilege and safety. I have food, shelter, water. I am not forced to listen to the whir of bombs, or cower in the deathly silence …

Slip, Sliding, AWAY!

So, I’m gonna beg you ever so kind readers, not to laugh at me. It hurt... a lot. And the poor pheasants! They must’ve been scared half to death what with this being hunting season and all. I bet if I spoke pheasant, which I do not, but if I did I figure they were …

Writer’s Block, Begone!

It’s taken weeks, or more accurately, months for me to get to writing again which begs the question: What’s up with that? There’ve been lots of attempts on my part, with actual hours spent typing away. Mostly though, my dabbling’s aren’t worthy of your eyes (or mine, for that matter) and so into the Recycle …

I Was Scared… I’m Better Now.

Day One It’s 4 a.m. I wake feeling I am going to vomit. Keeping still, I inhale slowly, then exhale slowly. The feeling gradually gives way as a dull ache comes to life in my head. I close my eyes. If I’m going to be sick, so be it. Being that we’re still bumbling around …

A Mother’s Lesson…

Painting "Mother's Love" by Roxana Gonzales Her teeth, discoloured and crooked, were a life-long source of embarrassment. Her body, once wafer-thin and airy, had become thick and heavy. Fat, evenly distributed, made her breasts and belly, even her arms, too big for her small frame. Light on her feet when young, she didn’t risk dancing …

The Role of a Lifetime: What does it look like?

The man who took on the role of my dad worked steady and hard but liked a drink to his detriment and mine. Believing himself wise, he would boast about being self-taught, all the while remaining rather pedestrian in his style. He excelled as a salesman having inherited the Irish “gift of gab” but fell …

Unplug. Take Time Out. Reset. It’s a Good Thing.

As much as I love walking in the rain, after doing it for a few days in a row, I’ve had enough. Fickle? Perhaps, but rain, no matter how protective one’s outerwear, always finds its way to skin. And when a winter’s day rain finds skin, expect to be chilled to the bone in short …

What Happens When You Die? I Can’t Really Say … I’m Still Alive

It’s raining. A common thing this time of year here. It's fairly warm at 6 degrees Celsius (42 for you Fahrenheiters), too. Also, typical. The rain is soft; no puddling. There's a slight breeze blowing. I know this only because, through the window, I can see a branch or two wave at me occasionally. Inside, …