Oh, New Year’s Resolutions, how I love you! Let me count the ways! Maybe prior to counting, a more realistic assessment of my affection for you is necessary. I love the thought of an entire new year ahead, and the thrill of speculating…
Tucked away with other keepsakes is a small, decorated gift box with a fancy handkerchief inside. The gift card remains intact and is for my Mother from Rachel, a woman who did cleaning in an apartment building my parents once owned. She…
Frank Sinatra released the album, “September of my years” in 1965. I was 17, and he was turning 50 that December. The album, still in my possession, included the Grammy Award winning “It Was a Very Good Year” and other…
Plans commenced many months ago for a June, 2014 family vacation. When I mentioned a possible Florida trip or asked more experienced travelers for suggestions about renting a beach house, they would ask who was going. My response of “eight…
Sleep deprivation adversely affects my disposition and thinking skills. Some might wonder why a woman whose grown children live away from home with children of their own is sleep deprived. I’m not a care provider for someone residing in my…
Many years ago when my first-born was a toddler, I was talking to my friend’s mother, a relatively new grandmother, and someone I considered high-energy. Her daughter, my friend, had spent a few days visiting and while this grandma was…
Deciding if I wanted to get a job was never an option. My parents, particularly my mother, were very specific about financial behavior in our family. (Her beliefs and enforcement of them would be esteemed in today’s society although many…
Dear Santa Claus, Yes, I know you’re a very busy man in December and probably wondering why a woman my age would be writing you a letter. Sentimentality for one reason and a genuine fondness for the season is another.…
Some 31 years ago, plus or minus a month or two, my handsome date, who later became my handsome husband, stood in a long slow moving line with me and many others at the Madison Theatre in Peoria. We were…
Celebrating December 25th has become a complicated affair. We struggle with what to call the day: Christmas, as it’s traditionally known; Winter Solstice, a newcomer name; Winter Holiday, rather generic; with additional options certain for the future. Even the most…
