Growing Up

Did you ever read the cover headlines of The National Enquirer while waiting in line at the grocery checkout? I have NEVER forgotten the best one ever which I saw maybe 30 years ago. “Gassy Elephant Blows Trainer Through Tent Wall.” Who needed to read the story? The headline said it all. I could not…

Once upon a time, I woke up before dawn to the sound of rain against my barely cracked windows. For a moment I lay there with a nostalgic wee smile on my pillow-creased face, until I realized what that day was and bolted from bed in horror! That was the morning of the Lynchburg Art…

Mother told me, somewhat sarcastically, “For four years you’ve complained about missing the snow. You’ll be happy to learn that we’ll be moving back to Rhode Island when school is out!” She was not nearly as excited about moving back as her 13-year-old daughter was. People speak glowingly of sunny California, but I honestly felt…

An 8 or 9-year old boy can always find a proper adventure. There was the spring morning when my brother, sister, and I, wrapped in our spring jackets, were running around in the yard in up-state New York. Stan called us to come see what he’d found in the basement window well. It was a…

During my teen years, I cannot remember a single birthday when I was not on restriction. Honestly, I was a pretty good kid. I never went to any of those “secret parties” in the Old Fort. (These were the days when the Old Fort was in ruins, was clearly marked “Restricted Property,” and was completely…

Today, I found a very old copy of “The Swamp Fox” which I decided I must read because Francis Marion came from the PeeDee region of South Carolina, where my parents’ people came from. Also, the name Marion (or Marian) recurs on both sides of my family, being my middle name as well. So, I…

Lucretia Mott was a real person. I was surprised a couple of years ago to discover she was not quite the woman I had been taught. Apparently, when you are the youngest child in the brood and your older siblings are bright, impressionable, and anxious to impress with the incredible knowledge that they learned in…

May 13, 2023 I never experienced the luxury of growing up with cousins in the same town, or friends with me from toddlerhood through high school and beyond. I was blessed with many wonderful friends, but each had a window of time, maybe one year, maybe four, that we shared daily contact. Because I have…