Last weekend, I indulged in one of my favorite hobbies: collecting sea glass.  As I hunched over a slip of beach on a rocky coastline, my eyes scoured the sand and rocks for small gems.  A sliver of green . . . a small piece of pale brown.  I found sharp shards that I tossed back into the sea to continue their journey. (more…)

I remember once being amused by an advertisement campaign for “Back to School” sales using the popular Christmas song, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”  Oh yeah, I have definitely had that feeling. (more…)

The first tree I fell in love with was a southern magnolia.  That tree, as I recall, was absolutely huge - with low lying branches where a little girl could sit, sheltered from the Texas heat.  In the spring it produced giant, fragrant blossoms - larger than my hands - that gave off the most heavenly scent imaginable.  My mother used to put the blooms in bowls of water around the house so that the rooms would fill with the smell of magnolia. (more…)

My shoes don’t fit.  I don’t get it . . . shoes that fit me last spring are suddenly too short.  Being already on the verge of clown-sized feet, I’m the last person in the world who needed to up my shoe size.  Sure, I have experienced pants not fitting from year to year, or after a little too much holiday cheer, but come on . . . shoes? (more…)

It seems a fitting topic on Easter eve to reflect on new life.  After all, the theme echoes through the resurrection, through Mother Nature and through the often daunting and ever timeless task of raising children.  My 17 year old daughter Elizabeth has been, her whole life, on the front lines of new life . . . leading me further along the path of loving and letting go. (more…)