seeing and seen
In August we traveled to Pennsylvania to meet our new niece, Naomi Renee. I cannot imagine a happier little being. And why not? She was… Read More »seeing and seen
In August we traveled to Pennsylvania to meet our new niece, Naomi Renee. I cannot imagine a happier little being. And why not? She was… Read More »seeing and seen
We don’t get to finish being courageous. We don’t take one brave leap, land with a gymnast’s flourish, and saunter impressively onward for the remainder… Read More »what courage looks like
First, a fun fact. It’s unlikely that anyone remembers this, but the last time I wrote a blog with “part one” in the title, I never wrote a… Read More »the marvelous mundane – part two
I woke very early and eased my body out of bed. The attic floorboards creaked beneath my careful feet. David slept soundly in the imperfect silence. The darkness of morning usually… Read More »candle or no candle
Late on a Saturday morning I take my mother’s hair between my fingers and begin to braid. Mom doesn’t like it when hair falls into… Read More »braiding my mother’s hair
I am standing in the doorway when I read Tony Hoagland’s poem. David and our niece and nephew are playing with toy cars and trucks and planes,… Read More »thank you, Tony Hoagland
In May of 2013, I unwittingly lost a glove from my bike basket on my ride to yoga class. When I discovered my loss, I… Read More »restoration: part one
One year ago, on a warm July morning, I woke up incredibly early to walk the beach. A few hours later I arrived in Rowley, Massachusetts, where… Read More »first year
Inconvenience is an invitation into the present moment. Some days I need to be invited repeatedly. The first time I took the laundry into the elevator on… Read More »the inconvenient day
I have an hour till David comes home with our niece and nephew. An hour to clean up from lunch and water the plants and type the emails… Read More »another (brief) lesson in surrender
Here’s the guest post I wrote for my friend Catherine’s blog: some of the gifts of this challenging year in Wichita. http://catherineannehawkins.com/hannahs-in-between-guest-post/ Special thanks to… Read More »after the burning
The luminous Catherine Hawkins was one of my husband David’s childhood friends. Catherine and I became close in the spring of 2012, when I sweet-talked… Read More »my hands are dying
When I get home from the airport, I’m hungry. I make a piece of toast and slather it with coconut oil, the way Mama does… Read More »on mothers, hungers, and toast
We play dozens of games when we get together with Joy and the kids. We play Mario in our jammies; we pull out cribbage once… Read More »in the game
The paperwhites are in full bloom the morning I learn that Grandma has died. Before I turn on my phone and see the message, I… Read More »from bulb to blossom
It started with the Wyoming Santa. A brief, typed note and two gift cards from a postal box in Gillette. We looked at each other… Read More »Wyoming Santa
It’s the second morning of December. True to form, I started a Thanksgiving newsletter before Thanksgiving but didn’t finish it in time. I’ve cherished grand… Read More »2013 Thanksgiving newsletter
Thanksgiving morning. We wake to a text from Mom, who misses me. Next comes toast in the hotel lobby with David and his dad Mark.… Read More »Thanksgiving morning
Ah, not to be cut off, not through the slightest partition shut out from the law of the stars. The inner — what is it?… Read More »the winds of homecoming
It’s a rainy morning in Wichita. Most of the colored leaves in the courtyard below our apartment still cling to their branches. The flags whip… Read More »Wichitastic
It started July 26th at 11:30 p.m. on I-40, 3.1 miles from our exit in Brownsville, Tennessee. We were planning what we’d do when we… Read More »while waiting
Ben, Joy, Ally and Jack will be here in less than three hours, but I’m sitting down in my untidy bedroom to write a blog… Read More »just so
Dear Quentin, Happy August! I miss your songs and stories. Remember how we used to find luminous, common things on the playground at recess? I… Read More »dear Quentin
I woke early Sunday morning, wearied by the ludicrous night visions only a bride-to-be must endure. A shower rinsed off the outermost layer of fretfulness.… Read More »the Sun and the shower
Weddings mean flowers, right? I’m sure most summer brides have already ordered their bouquets, but that item is still languishing on my to-do list. My… Read More »all the colors
Last Monday morning I planned to write about Vespa the dog. While my friends the Worsfolds take their customary April trip, I inhabit their home… Read More »the Monday after
Blessed be the first bite of birthday cake. Hallowed be that moment, long before the gears of memory began to turn, when I learned that… Read More »in praise of all things sweet
On the train home to Boston yesterday I gazed out the window at the new fallen snow. Celebrating my birthday with my family in Philadelphia… Read More »new and not-so-new
Lately my heart has felt near to splitting its seams. It’s partly because this is my first Christmas far from my family. It’s also the… Read More »if this isn’t nice, i don’t know what is
The month of November was shrouded in misery. Did teaching feel impossible because I was sick all month or was I sick all month because… Read More »in pain’s classroom
This weekend I visited my family in Pennsylvania. I went down to see a CD release concert by Constant Recourse, Ben and Jess’s band. I… Read More »a lesson from Lydia
When Mom came to visit we walked to the beach and stared at the waves. We spoke of mundane matters: an old friend who got… Read More »when Mom came to visit