Columns

Tending The Flock

It’s quiet. Other than the flapping noise of our flags on the flagpole outside our front door, there are few sounds to disturb the quiet landscape. The thick blanket of snow has muffled most noise. In the stillness, I strain to listen to the nature around me. As I approach the bird feeders, there are some very distinct voices greeting me. The birds eagerly await my arrival and let me know with their melodic songs. The tiny finches, the gorgeous red cardinals, the cooing doves and the other assorted winged creatures are excited to see me. They know I am going to ensure their meal ...

This Is the Year

This is the year — 2025 — when I told myself I would do my best to get better organized. It’s not a New Year’s resolution, just a plan in my mind. I hope I can bring it to fruition. I believe I got a good start on Tuesday night. While the TV was blasting out college football bowls and later some of the New Year’s Eve events from New York City, I was sitting at my computer contemplating my 2025 plan. I decided I did not need to wait until the famous New Year’s ball dropped for me to get motivated. One of the first things I did was a small start. I took down the 2024 ...

Hands Down, Mittens For The Win

I don’t remember ever saying it’s too cold to go outside and play. That is, when I was a kid. Maybe that’s because we prepared for the cold by bundling up in layers of warm clothes. We even placed empty bread bags over our socks before slipping into our snow boots. This provided extra insulation and kept our feet dry in the event of leaky boots. Every year we had to trade up or down with siblings to ensure we had boots that fit. Sometimes that simply meant wearing several pairs of socks in the event the boots were too big. We knew how to make it work and allow us to spend hours ...

What Would Jesus Eat?

I realize that Thanksgiving was just last month. It was a day of thanksgiving, but let’s face it, there was a lot of talk about food. And there were plenty of recipes tried and true that made the rounds online, in magazines and newspapers. However, I have found that Christmas is also about food. And my Jewish friends will agree that Hanukkah celebrations are food-laden as well. While growing up, we did not have fancy meals that came out of the pages of “Southern Living.” Mom’s simpler recipes were taken from the well-worn cookbooks that lined a kitchen shelf. There were the ...

Lighting The Way To Christmas

It never gets old. I don’t know about you, but a drive around my hometown at this time of year brings back memories of a crowded station wagon filled with my siblings and a neighbor kid or two thrown in for good measure. My dad knew that the only way to temper the over-excited kids in the “House of Children” was to pile them into the car and take a drive around neighborhoods to see the holiday lights and decorations. As Christmas approached, it became an annual tradition to check out whose houses were Santa worthy. These little trips through different parts of town gave us a ...

A Welcome Sound In The Night

I had just slipped into bed when I heard it. I muted the TV and stopped to tune my ears to the sound. There are some noises no one wants to hear at bedtime — a dripping faucet, a beeping smoke alarm or a scream. But on this night, there was nothing scary about the noise. In fact, it was a welcome sound. I turned to my husband and asked him, “did you hear it?” With a smile, he answered yes. Now that the trees surrounding our homestead are naked, we could hear the sound of a train lumbering through Martins Ferry. Its whistle reaffirmed what we already surmised. Even though we ...