Category: Personal

From June 2000 through September 2005, my husband, kids, and I lived in beautiful, hilly Southern Indiana. We lived on 6 acres of what I called “my little piece of heaven on earth.”  One day, my father-in-law and I walked the 6-acre property. “That is a noxious weed,” he said, pointing to what I had…

January 6 is a day forever etched in my mind. And this is why… December 21, 2021, the doctor said Dad only had weeks to live, so we high-tailed it to Illinois. Shane and I had been there early December, but we headed back December 23rd. Shane went back home the day after Christmas, but…

I am never filled with more hope than at the beginning of a new year. I sit with 2025 memories as I scan the horizon of 2026. I pull out paper and pen, and begin my list. Things I want to do. To learn. To read. To cook. To finish. A sense of familiarity overtakes…

We called him the bread man. Always smiling, Wayne worked for the Wonder Bread Company and delivered hamburger buns to the restaurant every week. Church was not part of our family-life, so Wayne took our family on as a mission field.  Wayne talked about Jesus while my dad blew cigarette smoke in Wayne’s face and…

Some of my earliest memories are in the back room of my parents’ Reaban’s Drive-In, a burger place. I sat at a butcher block counter in the back corner of the room, playing with dolls, especially my Little Kittles. Occasionally I peeked through the saloon-style doors which separated the back room from the public part…

Spending so much time at home in 2020, I wanted more creativity in my cooking. I also longed for comfort food, so the obvious choice was baking.  While scrolling Instagram, I noticed a resurgence of bread baking. This created a challenge, because not only did we have a shortage of toilet paper, we also had…

I scooped the pile of towels from the laundry room floor. Before I deposited the towels into the washer, a snake fell to the floor. In times like these a person learns how quickly she can move. And how loudly she can scream. I immediately grabbed a nearby bucket, turned it upside down and placed…

When I was a young girl, I spent a lot of time with my friend, Tonya. I wanted to be just like her. She was pretty and outgoing, and she was always doing something new and exciting. If Tonya liked something, I decided I liked it too. “I love green olives,” she announced to me…

My daughter and I were taking a walk in our neighborhood. I began to hear a noise. I assumed it was a weed eater, until a small motorbike pulled up next to us. An exuberant young man jumped off the motorbike, whipped off his helmet and began jabbering. My daughter and I stood there, somewhat…