And all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. Well, not quite…. Two little girls lay ever so still in their bed, but with wide open eyes and hands clasped together, their whispers broke the silence of that holy night. They tried their very best…
This week’s story will be a different one from my usual childhood recollections. This week, I feel compelled to share with you some of what being mountain folk means. We often lament how different things are now than they were 10 or 20 or 50 years ago, but when you…
It smelled of new ink on crisp, clean paper and told more stories than Scheherazade did in 1,001 Arabian Nights. Thousands of children and about as many adults soaked it up like a sponge. It told stories of glamour and intrigue, stories of fun and adventure, and stories of dreams…
In the very center of my grateful heart, an empty spot reveals itself from time to time. Today is one of those times. This Thanksgiving Day, I find my heart longing for my mountain home and the family I held so dear. I imagine most of you know that feeling…
We awakened that Thanksgiving morning to a world drained of color. Steamed up windows with frost around the edges told Libby and me that we now lived in a world of pure white. The excitement of what lay outside pulled us right out from under our electric blanket to run…
Wiping the sleep out of my still half-closed eyes, I stumbled down into the den already aware that no electricity meant something had gone wrong during the night. My eyes lit on Daddy, who sat in his big recliner, and immediately, my stomach sank, and my heart jammed into my…
Hello Friends, Monday was Halloween, and despite living in a community full of children, we had no trick-or-treaters. For several years, we turned on our porch light, ready to answer that unmistakable call to deliver various nuggets of almost pure sugar into bags held out by bright-eyed, eager kids. But…
Fall is in the air, and I love it. Fall has become my favorite time of the year as the earth slows down and prepares for a period of rest and renewal. I am usually ready for some rest and renewal myself. In years past, though, fall was probably the…
Tom and I met our very first day at Emory & Henry College where we were assigned to the same orientation group. Over the next four years, we had several mutual friends, and we occasionally ended up in the same class or at the same table for lunch. I would…
There is a place I know that no one else knows. Plenty of others know about the physical place and where it is, but I’m the only one who knows about the spiritual and tranquil place it once was. Sadly, everyone who knew about that place — my mom, my…
