It feels like urban camping. I bring my sleeping bag, wear jeans, no make-up. I make sure my clothes are dark, something that doesn't show newsprint and an outfit that can go from oven cleaning to dinner. It is our third child, our baby that is moving to Chicago. The others have had [...]
Matriarch. Me? It doesn't seem possible that I am now the oldest generation of our family. The female head, worthy of respect and reverence. Sorry to say this is how you get here. You lose your mother, the former female head of your tribe. And before that your father. And your daily work is done [...]
What it really means for me is that I need to focus on my own life now, when I have used mothering as an excuse, a focus that I couldn't take my eyes off entirely. Now I can. If I am ever going to get to it, it is now. I am sitting on a [...]
Who will we be without this place? And where else could home be? When we left Saint Paul, I convinced myself that we could move back when the kids were grown. We would want one of those craftsman bungalows with bedrooms on one floor. We could get to the coffee shop, restaurants, the theater, museum [...]
For men life begins when the last child leaves home and the dog dies. Well, that is what has happened. It's just us now. Phil and I hold each other in the small exam room in the Vet's office. Phoebe, our 14 year old Lab is with Dr Sven in back. He is starting an [...]
I am learning about dreams. Dreams that come during sleep. My desires, fears, and challenges confronting me. And to identify what a "Big Dream" looks like – living out a desire that defines who I am. I am in a dream study group that allows me to share my dreams. Dreams are sometimes lost to [...]
St Paul was not the twin of Minneapolis. For me it was more like a distant cousin. A gray old city way over there. I grew up on the west side by Medicine Lake, way over here. I visited downtown St Paul only once with my mother to buy tickets to see the Monkees during their [...]
A sales person in a car dealership once told me--and this was ten years ago-- "You are too old for a van." I liked her right away. She understood me. No more hauling kids to scouts, sports and school in my forest green Chrysler Town and Country. Time for a trade-in. I fancied myself a [...]
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