The smell of wood smoke rises from the old stone chimney of the Ramble In if my eyes are closed and my head held at a proper tilt. I can feel the thin Rocky Mountain air in my well-adapted young lungs and hear pine needle covered trails crunch under my feet as I scramble up, … Continue reading Ebenezer
Dominick and the Duck
Far far away, many many years ago in a Kindergarten classroom on the last day of school, five-year old Dominick gave me a little clay duck. Well, I've always called it a duck but truthfully its identity is a bit vague. You decide. To reveal the immediate thought that ran through my head might paint … Continue reading Dominick and the Duck
A Whittled Goodbye
There were a lot of words on this page just a few minutes ago. It felt a little silly when all I really want to say is, "thank you." So I whittled a tree down to a toothpick. Writing an occasional word to you has been a unique journey for me, a steep learning curve … Continue reading A Whittled Goodbye
Mrs. Farkas
On a narrow street in a small city in Idaho there lived an unassuming little lady who saved our family's musical bacon. She really did. No two ways about it. Ruth Farkas of Koster Street. She was a missing puzzle piece we didn't know we needed. Roxanne's very first piano lesson on Koster Street At … Continue reading Mrs. Farkas
The Streets of Laredo
Question for you: What's more important, striving to be the descendant that previous generations would be proud of? Or working every day to become an ancestor that future generations would want to claim as theirs? You think on that for a while and we'll circle back. Very briefly I'd like to sum up what's been … Continue reading The Streets of Laredo
Heat in the Pipes
The following was written 2 1/2 years ago. Much has changed. All these words still hold true but contain an additional brightness, an urgency to be noticed. We do not know if those we interacted with are still living. We do not know if the buildings we entered and enjoyed are still standing. What we … Continue reading Heat in the Pipes
The Homestead of Hope
Entering the world at the tail end of the Baby Boomers and growing up in the 60s and 70s, my decorative surroundings were very much oriented to flower power, wood paneling, wicker swag lamps, and David Cassidy posters. Strangely though, my wandering daydreams often took me to a time a hundred years prior when life … Continue reading The Homestead of Hope
Wheat Pennies
Across the speckled linoleum floor of Room 16 at Martin Park Elementary in 1968 stood a line of 2nd graders waiting to leave for lunch. As they did every day, each boy or girl passed by Mrs. Mullis at the door and answered questions regarding their possession of pennies -- not just any pennies -- … Continue reading Wheat Pennies
A Song in the Air
If you dig a little deeper past Deck the Halls, Jingle Bells, Frosty the Snowman, and even popular Christmas hymns like Joy to the World, Away in a Manger, and O Little Town of Bethlehem, you will find more obscure yet serenely beautiful Advent music. Could be you're familiar with many of them, but as … Continue reading A Song in the Air
Beulah Land and Betty Lou
My blessed mother-in-law started talking about her funeral somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 years ago so we "kids" became accustomed to nodding and smiling and "mmhmming" when that inevitable topic came up. Now we're all sitting around on couches holding cups of cold coffee staring blankly at each other wondering what to do because … Continue reading Beulah Land and Betty Lou
Beyond Lashley Lane 