Heroes Who Never Returned

Do you recall the story of Francis Scott Key and how he came to write The Star Spangled Banner? British ships bombarded Ft. McHenry all night and when morning came, Mr. Key anxiously scanned the sky to see whether the American flag still waved at the fort. The morning light finally revealed that magnificent banner, […]

Lady in the Lamplight

Dear children, after some delay I take my pen in hand in answer to your most welcome letter which I received and should have bin answered sooner but there is much of my time that it is almost all I can do to attend to my every day affairs so I hope you will excuse […]

Don’t Be a Square

Language, like everything else, changes with time. Sometimes I’m brought up short by realizing a word that I’ve used all my life doesn’t make sense to a younger generation. I’m out-of-date, not hip, and am an old fuddy-duddy. Never should I say my sofa is a davenport.  By the way, I don’t make long-distance calls […]

Rain

A dark, rainy morning. Thankfully, we’ve missed the vicious storms that hit Iowa and other places. My heart goes out to those people. A robin is cheerfully proclaiming a new day, maybe thinking of all the earthworms that will come tunneling to the top to keep from being drowned. As a hard shower started a […]

Culture and Traditions

One by one, we abandon traditions, leaving the past behind. It’s sad, because, although we shouldn’t live in the past, we need a sense of continuity. There is something comforting about following patterns, about observing practices that have been carried down through generations. It gives me a connection to my ancestors. Decoration Day, always the […]

But Where Do They Come From?

I don’t believe in fairies. Of course, I don’t. They show up only in children’s stories of years ago, those magical little folk who can nip through the air, appearing and disappearing as they wish. And yet, when I see mushrooms that have popped up in my grass overnight,  I wonder just what, exactly, goes […]