Summer Doesn’t Keep!

Most Moms —and many Dads—have heard the familiar poem by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton. I‘ve just included a few lines here: Where is the mother whose house is so shocking? She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking. Dishes are waiting and bills are past due Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo.` The shopping’s not done and there’s…

Be a ‘Real’ Gardener!

I consider myself a half-decent gardener but for some reason my forsythia bush stopped blooming about ten years ago. Maybe even longer. Actually, it only bloomed the year I bought it! The first time I saw no blossoms, I convinced myself it was just a late bloomer. But, yellow flowers never appeared. I chalked it…

Eulogy for Dad

Our family of six kids was raised in an era when children weren’t coddled. We were aware of our parents’ expectations. If you knew what was good for you, you did it. Without complaining.  I remember showing my parents a challenging test marked 98%. Dad looked at it and said, “What about the other 2%?”…