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Beginner's Heart

All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change. There is no way to escape being separated from them. ~ Buddha As my beloved & my sister-in-law held vigil, my beloved mother-in-law slipped away. Left behind her desolate children (I include myself & my other sister-in-law), her broken-hearted…

This Hallowe’en my grandson was a Ninja Turtle. Donatello, to be precise: Donnie, GiGi! Wearing his Ninja Turtle pyjamas, wielding his formidable plastic sword, he wreaked cuteness on the neighbourhood. And expanded my always-growing beginner’s heart at least 2 sizes. His father AND his uncle were Ninja Turtles, more than 2 decades ago. Back when these…

A couple of weeks ago I upgraded my phone. Which meant shifting contacts. And as there was a major update on my desktop as well, it seemed a good idea to go through my directory. Because people die. And it takes YEARS before I can bring myself to ‘delete’ them. And yes, I realise they’ve…

I’ve spent the past week as busy as bees storing late summer honey. First there was the annual writing conference I both help with and attend — Nimrod’s Conference for Readers & Writers. That’s a two-day gig of work (not to mention the prep!) for those of us who work it. There are writers to…

I name my trees when I plant them: Ramses, Henry, Scarlett, Daphne. My car has a name, and like T.S. Eliot, I believe cats will tell you their names. IF you pay attention. My sister and niece are still waiting for ‘Cat’ to tell them hers. Names are, as so many cultures know, power. A…

It’s autumn, when life begins to slow. Sap draws down, and other than the frenzied cheek-stuffing of squirrels, outside seems quieter. Except for the explosions of colour beginning to detonate. Today, I’m writing from a dear friend’s home, looking out over the infinitely beautiful valley below her wall of windows. Mostly evergreens, but the deciduous trees…

When I hear of the serial murder sprees — all done w/ guns — that plague America, I think of my sons. Not always first, but always. Probably too self-referential, I identify with the mothers of children slaughtered in Sandy Hook, executed in Umpqua, annihilated in Charleston. Who ends a phone conversation with a son or daughter…

I went to brunch with my beloved yesterday, to celebrate our zillionth (happy!) anniversary. It was beyond heavenly: all kinds of food I never make (my beloved & I have verrrry different ideas about food!). Like, crab claws (he hates shellfish; I adore it); baby shrimp salad; smoked salmon & trimmings; and an entire smörgåsbord of…

I don’t normally do book reviews, much less book raves. And yet… I just finished a book that captured me completely, Sy Montgomery’s The Soul of an Octopus. While I knew I would like it, I didn’t realise the moral dilemma it would present. My sister loves octopuses. And fyi: it’s not a Latin root, so the…

I am blessed with friends far better than I deserve. Colleagues; former students; girlfriends & guy friends; family who have long since blurred that line between friend & family, as have some friends who’ve migrated into heart-family. I even have friends who’ve become dearer because of our use of technology — a dear dear friend who…
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