There was a sharp glint of pink in the universe, northern lights crackled in the night sky. There was a deep crack and rolling rumble, a seismic icy shift, and a quiet shaking that formed a crack in the mountainous block of ice, the glacier, the glacier that is me, the mother of you, when you moved away. My … Continue reading Calving Season
Life
Smiling at a Potted Plant
"I just smiled at a potted plant, thinking it was you”. She thought she saw me at her table when I was having a long distance phone call with my Mom. This was when her mind was beginning to go a bit wild. I did not know it then but it was a sign of things to … Continue reading Smiling at a Potted Plant
Red Sun in Morning
I type in the dark, fingers missing keys, as my daughter sleeps in a shadowy futon couch bed in the corner of my study; a grown woman planning her big move to the west coast of the United States. Today she turns 21. The first fall without my Mom. She has passed away. Passe Compose. … Continue reading Red Sun in Morning
Mama
My mom’s dying is so gradual that I feel like I am watching a tree return to the earth. She hardly moves now, and Parkinson’s is stealing her voice and her expressions, just as she feared. But if I sit beside her and look into her eyes I know what she is thinking. Her eyes … Continue reading Mama
There is always time to dream, write and paint
My sister and I home schooled our kids, hardcore. We did not hesitate to leave behind the current public school curriculum and grade testing. We taught our kids to read, think, play and explore without anyone telling us how to do it. Although our Mom never home schooled I think that our confidence in taking over the education … Continue reading There is always time to dream, write and paint
Mama is Preparing to Leave this World
Every time I return from Toronto I know that these trips will be over soon. After my dad and his wife died I never went back to Victoria. The home, the chairs sitting in the sun, the desk with the photos, the box of tea, the couch where I crashed, were gone. Those very things … Continue reading Mama is Preparing to Leave this World
Tiny Moments of Reflection
In many tiny moments I think about life and death. If I am carefully pouring sugar water into a small glass bottle for hummingbirds, I think about my Dad and how he would have done this, when he was alive. How my Dad would have enjoyed my bird feeders, and laughed with me about the … Continue reading Tiny Moments of Reflection
East Coast Challenges: Buying Furniture
'Gathering' is a necessary strategy out here in the east, a survival technique for the barren grounds of the Maritimes, where the couches no longer roam free.
Mom and the Old Bitch Above
There was a time in my youth when I wished my Mom was dead. As soon as I wished it I realized that it was a terrible solution. I knew that my Mom drove me crazy in various ways but it was certainly not fair to request her death in order to set me free … Continue reading Mom and the Old Bitch Above
Chaos and Order – Life and Music
I drove to Dorchester the other weekend to go to a village organized garage sale extravaganza. I found a few things but one of the most wonderful things was the music I found. I was looking through a box of things and found some hand labeled CD’s and cassette tapes. What drew me to the … Continue reading Chaos and Order – Life and Music
Notes from a Sinking Isthmus 