(See below for info on this photo.) It wasn’t always like this. This is what I think as my pen taps the yellow pad on my desk, waiting for someone to pick up at the Schoharie County Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse. The opioid crisis is hitting closer and closer to home, wreaking havoc […]
Quitting time?
I need to quit writing. Or at least quit writing so much. I blame Saoirse for this. Or the voices in my head. I kinda blame Dad. I definitely blame Kate. I get Kate’s message when Bob, the kids and I come out of the woods two weeks ago. We spent 24 hours in sylvan […]
Darned Life
My favorite purple sweater is turning green. It was one of Bob’s cast-offs. It went through the laundry a few years before we were even married, and came out of a hot wash fitting me perfectly. Like most old clothing, it has far more value than my new clothing, by virtue of the fact that […]
The Unattainable
Some things seem beyond reach… But only because we’ve forgotten how to stretch ourselves. My friend Nancy and I have brought Saoirse and Ula to a nearby art museum for an exhibit of Maxfield Parrish’s paintings. Saoirse is wandering the gallery with a notebook, gazing at the pictures and writing down story ideas. Ula […]
Farm in transition? It’s a job for the Super Friends
What does it take to move a family farm between the generations? Heroes. Bob and I have just finished unloading from the market when Kate, our summer intern, clomps by in her barn boots carrying a dead chicken. Dad is just coming in from the back fields in the Mule and she walks […]
What dogs and mud taught me about working with family
When everything is at its dirtiest, showing up to face the muck and share the load are the most important steps. I take a tentative step on the woodland trail I’ve been breaking all winter. The snow is too soft today. I sink to my knees. Sighing, I call to the dogs. We abandon the […]