Just the Facts, Ma’am

Just the Facts, Ma’am

    “Just the facts, Ma’am,” is attributed to Sgt. Joe Friday on the long-running TV program Dragnet. A writer of fiction wants a bit more than the facts. She wants to embroider on the truth to make it more interesting, but when she states facts, they had better be correct.  Facts and inspiration come […]

Early Morning Sounds

Early Morning Sounds

I’ve always enjoyed early morning sounds. They mean that night is over, the sun is on its way, a whole, new day opens up before me. Possibilities rise with daybreak. When I was a child, I awoke to the chunk of wood being poked into a cookstove, the clink of a coffee pot and the […]

When the Long Ago Suddenly Reappears

When the Long Ago Suddenly Reappears

Is the past really the past or does it reappear now and then? I saw one of my old college professors the other day, even though he has been dead a good number of years. Now, before you think I’ve gone completely round the bend, let me explain. Actually, I didn’t see him but I […]

Happy Birthday, Mama

Happy Birthday, Mama

Today, April 12 is my mother, Susie Latty Day’s birthday. Mom has been gone for nearly twenty-two years now and there isn’t a day when I don’t miss her. I’d love to sit down at her dining table for just one more cup of coffee, just one more chat. Many times, I wonder what my […]

Mom

Mom

I can see her as a little girl, dark hair in braids, running down that dusty road at Etta, hoeing weeds out of the garden, her bonnet dangling down her back, or picking wildflowers for a spring bouquet. She was the middle child in the Latty family, the mischievous one who was always busy but […]

Without a Song the Road Would Never Bend

Without a Song the Road Would Never Bend

Without a Song there ain’t no love at all. I love the words and the philosophy. When life is hard, when there seems to be no answer to problems, when nights are unending, we’d have no hope at all without the music of the soul. Hope, no matter how deeply it’s buried, that candle that is small and […]