Lately I seem to have been afflicted with horseflies.  You know, those monsters that you can hear bouncing all around you . . . running into walls . . . buzzing overhead.  Then all of a sudden . . . BAM!! They take a chunk out of you and you scream.  When I was younger […]

Of late we as a people seem to have been pummeled with bad news and terrible situations.  I say “of late” because I don’t remember life ever being this  . . . distressing . . . disturbing . . .?  Are those the words for which I’m searching?  I’m sure there are plenty of others, […]

In case you’ve been living under a rock these past few weeks, allow me to mention that Sunday is Father’s Day—that day set aside to honor fathers for all their contributions to the world in general and family life in particular.  So far I’ve received emails encouraging me to shop the specials and surprise my […]

Several years ago, my son and daughter-in-law had gone Christmas shopping in search of, among other things, something for me.  Now, some folks will tell you I’m hard to buy for.  Those are the people who don’t know me.  The rest know you can write a check to a charity or walk into a Disney […]

Every year my little one and her husband escape to various destinations right about Memorial Day/Guinniversary—‘cause those dates generally overlap.  And every year I’m in charge of evening pet care at their abode—namely the feeding and watering of four cats and two dogs with a few other tasks thrown in for good measure.  All cats […]

My Grandmother Rogers (aka Wa-Wa, which is what you get when trying to teach a two year old to say Grandmother Rogers) was born in December of 1899, a fact that made remembering her age incredibly easy.  At each birthday she turned whatever the year was about to be.  Needless to say (but which I’m […]

His son had left this life tragically and much too soon.  I never knew exactly what happened and I never asked.  I figured if that was knowledge I was supposed to have then someone would supply it without me making a formal—and none-of-my-business—request.  But honestly, the circumstances didn’t change the end result—a family left to […]

There are a lot of events in life that we simply take for granted will occur.  If you’re in high school, everyone just assumes there will be a graduation to attend.  If you go to college afterwards . . . or enter the military . . . or attend a trade school . . . […]

In May of 1992, my husband’s 86 year old grandmother suffered a massive stroke.  One day she was up and going and keeping great-grandkids and the next she was in a hospital room in Memphis, and the family was gathering to have the end of life discussion.  Initially I had believed there was hope.  When […]

Recently I had the opportunity to speak with someone I had not spoken to in years.  They had previously lived in our area and we had attended church together . . . but then her husband began experiencing what turned out to be the early stages of Alzheimer’s.  At that time they were living in […]