An excerpt from my empty nest essay, appearing in the latest issue of “Under the Sun” literary journal. The note appears hooked to the knob of my front door, a warning. The emerald ash borer disease has ravaged the hundred-year-old stately ash trees lining our road, and our city has decided to take them all down. The forty trees …
Tag Archives: grief
Well-Acquainted with Grief
“Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop on the heart until, against our will, in our own despair, comes wisdom from the awful grace of God.” ~ Aeschylus I collect certain people. Pack them into life’s travel bag, looking them up at the first sign of hardship and pain. I …
Changing the Endings
At lunch recently a co-worker shared that growing up, her father owned a funeral home in a small Tennessee town; she and her siblings were all part of the business. They had a dark comedic side that they brought to the work, like getting a chuckle when their favorite flower arrangement arrived complete with a …