COLD WALK

We walk most every morning, usually for an hour or longer north or south or north and then south. We waved at Tammy when she came out n the sand. Gary spotted limpets. I often think through blog posts as I search the sand for plastic trash and pretty shells. I consider politics and friends …

NEIGHBORING MYTH

  Myth is scripture. Myth is wisdom. Myth is sacred story. Myth is magic and meaning. Myth defines and supports the goodness in us. It shows us a path, and as symbol—never underestimate symbols—myth is always true. Always. As a public high school English teacher I was very respectful in using the word "myth." I introduced …

WORTHWHILE

"… it is utterly impossible for over-worked teachers to preserve an instinctive liking for children; they are bound to come to feel towards them as the proverbial confectioner’s apprentice does towards macaroons. I do not think that education ought to be anyone’s whole profession: it should be undertaken for at most two hours a day …

SUBMIT

I submit. There it is. That word again. Eighteen months after sending a query to an agent, I heard back yesterday. She doesn't want that book but would be willing to hear about my next project. Not that I am complaining. A few agents I queried failed to make any sort of response. (I had …

WEATHER CHANGE

We like being the first out, while the sand is still unmarked by dogs and people. Usually we find prints and recognize by position who they belong to. That's John out for his run because the bare feet make prints so close together. Larry drags a bit. Tammy walks close to the water. The tracks …

BIRTHDAY

won’t you celebrate with me Lucille Clifton - 1936-2010 won’t you celebrate with me what i have shaped into a kind of life? i had no model. born in babylon both nonwhite and woman what did i see to be except myself? i made it up here on this bridge between starshine and clay, my …

AGING IN PLACE

On the beach before dawn yesterday, rainclouds had moved off, and the sky was aqua over the ocean. My husband Gary and I followed the tideline until we met a friend and stood for a time admiring the cool air, the empty beach. We shared news of neighbors, and then said goodbye until tomorrow. We …

‘in my great and unmatched wisdom’

What are we doing here? The President has invited foreign powers to interfere in the US presidential election. Democrats want to impeach him for it. Or, as my husband says, "We've been interfering in their government; it's only fair that they should be allowed to interfere with ours." Of course, Gary is being facetious.

IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S ME

I hope to take my third quilt up to be quilted this week—that's it above while it was about a third complete. I am waiting to hear when I can deliver it because I need to send my laptop in for repair. Again. I have been using a Mac daily since 1990 and until this …

BEING SMART & HIDDEN

The student stopped me in the hall one Fall day to tell me another teacher thought she was stupid, had told her she was stupid. I did not entirely believe her. And then a few days later, that teacher she'd complained of also stopped me in the hall, in almost the same spot, and told …