Oh, nature. You are testing me. That fox last month was one thing. But did he have to move his whole family here? Under the front porch? And, apparently, under the back deck as a playroom for the four – count ’em four – kits? The worst part is poor Yow-Yow Kitty has taken to patrolling from up on the rooftop of our house. A close second in the worst-part category is that the cute little kits like to roll…
The month of May brought bees to our gardens and our bookshelves: Book 1: The Happiest Man on Earth by Eddie Jaku This memoir doesn’t mess around, despite its title and subtitle (The Beautiful Life of an Auschwitz Survivor). Eddie Jaku, survives the horrors of the Holocaust and manages to build a fulfilling life for himself and his family. Like a kindly grandpa, Jaku offers advice to his readers so that they, too, can live a beautiful life. Book 2:…
Interesting comparisons in this month’s reading. Admittedly this was not a planned exercise, though. From David Copperfield to Demon Copperhead, the latter is a fascinating update to the heartbreaking story of a poor little orphan boy’s life. After re-watching the movie Julie & Julia recently (son James and I had been discussing chopping onions and I recalled that great scene), I remembered Gary gave me the book years ago. However: we’ll start off the month with a book I wish…
“The Hundred Acre Wood got floodier and floodier.” How lucky am I to have married a man who can quote Winnie the Pooh?! Farmer Gary and I were driving home after a wonderful weekend with James. Our youngest son lives exactly 250 miles from us, so it’s a bit of a haul, but always worthwhile. James cooked for us several times and took us to our first cat cafe. My favorite moment was just as we walked into the special…
Today is April 1. Apparently there was a bit of snowfall on this day 22 years ago outside Mom’s window in Madison, Connecticut: One Flake Falling With one flake fallingthe snow begets a garden for the moon So April One once greenis slowly overlaid with whitethe pussy willows pausethe school bus hurries children home Some forty years ago I wroteof such a prank on such a dayI hear the same sky laughter nowand spot the sunshy preening for her bow…
Here we are at the end of another March, with most of the month’s books provided by Irish scribes. Out like a lamb? It’s definitely calmer today than last night’s tornado-watch storms. Made for a noisy evening, but one custom-made for reading. Here are the books I read in March: Book 1: Singing My Him Song by Malachy McCourt Even though he was born in New York, Malachy McCourt grew up in Limerick, Ireland so we’ll count him as one…
With Canada in the news so much lately, I took a look in Mom’s writing archives and found an interesting piece she wrote about Canada geese: Work in Progress I saw them again yesterday, feeding in the field where corn had grown all summer: Canada geese, a dozen or so, those wild and mystical squires of the sky who call us to joy and freedom when they fly above our eyes. Finding them there the first time I was struck…
According to weather lore: If March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb. Here in Indiana, the lion was roaring all day. Here’s a poem Mom wrote in 1976, with her promise to a lion: the lion’s house lionin the spring of the yearI am going to build a house for you when it is readythe rabbits will pour champagnethe squirrels will pass around the cakesyou may borrow my emerald ribbons for the dayand carry…
For such a brief month, February’s weather sure provided a lot of reading time, from The Handmaid’s Tale to Pinocchio. Eight books in all. Here we go: Book 1: The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood Another frequently banned book. You know why? This female dystopian novel is based on the truth. It’s based on individual happenings from the history of America and around the world. It hit me a few books later in the month: female slaves were treated this…
“I married my mother, you realize that, don’t you?” That question always makes Farmer Gary chuckle. Just like Mom, he absolutely loves to get mail. Every morning – like clockwork – he checks the mailbox here at home and then the one over at the farm. … except on federal holidays, of which there are “too many” this time of year, apparently. Lately, Gary’s noticed the delivery rate speed has dropped, right in line with the cost of postage increasing….