I’ve Planted Gardens no Longer Mine

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I need bright colors and fragrances and miniature houses for fantasy. I planted tulip bulbs and mums, almond trees, lilacs, and weeping cherries in yards no longer mine. My bleeding heart in Minnesota grew to a bountiful, huge bush. Neighbors … Read More

We are Powerless. Not in Front of Children. Your Art.

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The Sun Comes Up in Mourning The question of the moment: How do you keep the world in your heart while living your life? I have had this conversation several times in the past few days. These are agreements among … Read More

The Fifties are the Revenge of the Flat-Chested Woman

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It’s the decade when lots of things change. “The fifties are the revenge of the flat-chested woman,” my petite friend stated over coffee. I am not a flat-chested woman; not stacked, ever, but I had cleavage in my late teens … Read More

A Bit of Good News to Share with You

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I have been blogging on Medium, a blogsite – sorta like Facebook – where I have my own writer’s page, along with 200,000 others.  The advantage of Medium is that search engines like Google comb their pages and refer readers … Read More

From the Valley of the Jolly (Ho Ho Ho) Green Giant

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What was the worst job you ever had? The clean-up crew had their radios tuned to the local station from 6 p.m. until we heard the call to report. We listened for the familiar jingle (“From the valley of the … Read More

Please Don’t Use the F-word with This Mother

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We have many specific descriptive words in the English language. Poetry slams are not for the faint of heart. When I started writing again, I attended poetry slams. I introduced myself as representing the Medicare Division. I was older than … Read More

Hundreds of Bald Eagles Will Go North on Mississippi Flyway

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And Cartwheel for Love. The ice on the Mississippi cracks creating holes and floes. Around La Crosse, Wisconsin, the Mississippi is a braided river, with many islands and back channels and sloughs. The large trees along the river are bare … Read More

Are You a “Kinkeeper”?

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We need family rituals — along with crazy uncles and reactive cousins Maintaining family relationships does not happen automatically. It takes the work of “kinkeeping,” the small tasks and large events that reassert we are family. My 2-year-old grandchild has … Read More