Today, I am attempting a villanelle poem. I’ve always wanted to try writing one of these, so I figured why not now. I read on a few websites how to write a villanelle since it has a specific structure. I will share what I have, but I think I need to consult another website because…
siblings
Poetry Friday: Coping with Being Overwhelmed
This week has been stressful once again. We’ve been in New York since last Thursday the 14th. My Dad was admitted to the hospital on the 13th after seeing his oncology doctor in her office. My sister was with him and drove him to the ER. By nine that night, he had a hospital bed…
Poetry Friday: It’s Been A Week…Or, Two
A diary-style post Whew! It’s been a week! June itself has whizzed by, creating a “what happened to that month” feeling. I decided to record what happened in a diary-style post today. Earlier this month On June 8th I flew to New York to see my Dad. Many of you read about that visit. I…
School and College Contemplations
Oh, boy! This year is set to be very different than any previous year for school. I have two students headed back to college classes and one who I thought was going to be entering as a college freshman but decided in early June that he was going to pursue a different path despite getting…
Sibling Memories: Growing up Sisters
Do you have siblings? I have one sister, a younger sister, two years my junior. We’ve had some pretty serious discussions in the last few weeks due to our aging parents. We don’t always agree on things, but we usually hear each other out and do what we can to support one another emotionally and…
Gifting and Grace
It’s that time of year. The time of year asking your children, your spouse, your siblings, and your parents what they’d like to receive for Christmas. The answers get harder and harder to get. Thus, it gets harder to give. Sometimes, when you really pay attention and listen well, you might receive a flash of…
Leadership Series: How do you teach modesty?
When you think of a modest person, you do not equate them with the following actions: Blowing their own horn… Boasting… Bragging… Conceitedness… Merriam Webster defines modesty “as the quality of not being too proud or confident about yourself or your abilities.” Some very accomplished people are modest. Have you ever wondered how they arrive…
An Attempt at Micro Fiction
Last week, just days before a submission deadline, I saw an advertisement for flash fiction stories. Since I had never written such a brief story before, I tried it. What follows is my revised attempt. There were two major flaws with my submission. One was that I missed the deadline. After I wrote the piece…