For my birthday one year, my mom gave me all of her writings from 1960 to what was present day. In 1973, my dad had undergone open heart surgery, and they had been told he maybe had 8 years to live. Having trouble processing what was their new reality, she was assigned to write a…
Tag: Fear
as i learn to walk again
at a pivotal age i learned that life ends and begins around me a pet deer a dead father tadpoles in the pool kidnappers behind the swing i begged for lighting rods ant bait and code words to protect me from my own mind i have experience with the dark night and the sun will…
resilience
dirty windows look upon a cottage from my dining room i keep a careful watch over bedroom curtains then i can see flickering lights if she wrestles with the night while i am awake writing silly poems about love as each day passes it will be harder to drive away the maturation process the…
For the Love of Shoes
I have said that I love shoes, as recently as this week. I always joke with my students that I like their shoes and ask if we can trade. They always say no, until I asked Derek. He said yes, and he was serious. I kicked off my shoes and he his. They were a…
BEING PRESENT
The price of being honest is worth the risk every time. That is the lesson I have learned this week. People tend to show their colors when confronted with honesty, a benefit to the truth teller. When honesty is not met with logic I admit to getting a little crazy. Even when the palms of…
Seeking, Losing, Refinding – True Love
As a recovering Art History major, one of my greatest lessons of the ancient Greeks is found in their temples. Never mind that I found God under Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel Ceiling or through Bernini’s interpretations of the physical world in the Villa Borghese. My quest for the eternal started in the ancient ruins of Greece….
I CHOOSE LOVE
In the vastness of the universe, I believe that two emotions are at play: Love and fear. In my life, I have experienced the magnitude of both, the vastness, the depths, the highs, the isolation, the comradery. There was a time when I knew that love existed, but I did not believe in it. That…
THE GREATEST GIFT MY MOTHER EVER GAVE ME
The greatest gift my mother ever gave me was to comfort me while I openly grieved her death. As I write this, it sounds so horribly morbid. You must understand this is what a young girl does after her family unit has been turned upside down. My father dying was tragic, but my brothers’ moving…
THE ENDURING MEMORY OF A COWBOY
Experiences are the foundation of life. Even though I have been a native Texan for most of my life, it wasn’t until I moved to rural New Mexico that I cultivated a deep love, respect, and admiration for cowboys. My life has always been on the periphery of cowboys and ranchers, but until I moved…
BACKYARD CHICKENS AND RELATIONSHIPS: WHAT I’VE LEARNED
I am newly single, coming out of a 12 year marriage. My gaze upon the world is constantly shifting as I analyze what it means to be a female. Nate’s and my backyard chickens have taught me a lot about men and women. A couple of years ago I went to a local feed store…
arlisann 