Every now and then, I look at words or things and they appear mysterious. It’s as if I’m seeing them for the first time. All of a sudden the word “porch” seems strange, and I wonder if I’m spelling it right. My brain pauses. Or, I notice that my feet have toes and “How odd…
When I was in grammar school I played the flute. I also played for a semester my freshman year in high school, but that was just a last ditched effort to pad my college application. Didn’t count. Third grade flute playing is what really stands out. I rented my flute. It was in a hard black case and…
Women should be more like heirloom tomatoes. I suppose men should too, but they have more flexibility, so I’m not discussing them right now. We have this beautiful heirloom tomato sitting on our counter. It’s bright orange and red swirly. It’s a little misshapen, kind of funky in the front, but really cool to look at.…
Waiting in line, anticipating your turn. It can be the take-a-number line at the DMV, or the youngest child waiting for her first high school dance. There’s tiptoe looking ahead, wondering what’s just beyond the door, or in front of the other bobbing backs of heads. At the same time, once your time is up, once it…
The key to life, well one of the keys anyway, is never being afraid of the drop. I used to play these string games as a kid, on the playground. The string or shoelace, or ribbon, just about anything, I remember using dental floss, is tied in a loop. The loop is then threaded through…
I was walking to my car this morning and not paying attention, which is pretty standard fare for me these days, when I put my key into the driver’s side door, turned the key, and unlocked the car. I have no idea why. I don’t have a car that needs to be manually opened. I have…
There’s Wait and then there’s Stay. According to Jack’s trainer, these two commands are very different. Wait means, “Hang on a minute and then I will ask you to come to me. There’s a sense of anxiety with wait, an anticipation.” Stay means, “Stay where you are and when I’m ready, I will come for you.…
I learned to ride a bike when I was eleven. We lived in Bronxville, New York. Santa brought me a burgundy Ross bike for Christmas. My first real bike, and while I was excited about the idea of being a bike rider, the actual process eluded me. I would sit and stare at my bike while thoughts of…
Jack usually picks up a stick on his walk. It started on the first or second walk and now he does it most of the time. He finds a stick and carries it in his mouth all the way home. Sometimes it’s a little twig, other times it’s big and covered in growth or dirt. We…