Note: This post originally ran on Veteran’s Day 2013. I am reposting it today without changes. My emotions remain the same. The facts remain the same—with the exception of the last sentence. I can no longer walk to the end of the street and see a farm. In the past 7 years, the Maples has grown to fill its available space. But that is another post for another day. My father, Carl Dierksen, tried very […]
I’m so glad you could come over. It’s been way, way too long since we’ve spent time together. Look, I have us set up here on the patio, safely distanced, and ready to enjoy today’s cooler weather. Won’t you join me? If we were having coffee… I would first of all ask you how you are. Because I really want to know. Because this question—which used to be a throw-away conversation starter— has a […]
It is March 19, 2020; I am four days into social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Life has been turned completely upside down. Most of us try to follow the new curve-flattening rules to protect ourselves and everyone else. But already, I yearn to go back to “normal,” assuming that the old normal will ever exist again. We can’t sleep, we stress eat, we have trouble concentrating. We either watch the news obsessively, or […]
Today, November 27, is circled in bright red on my calendar. It has been for months. You see, today is the release date for Kingdom of the Blind, book number 14 in Louise Penny’s series of Armand Gamache mysteries. Here’s how addicted I am to these books. I slept with my iPad on my nightstand last night. Immediately on waking up, I checked and found the ebook downloaded to my Kindle app, ready for my […]
It has been widely publicized that today is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. It is indeed a day to celebrate his heritage. His life and work have inspired countless people of all races, beliefs, and nationalities. Today is also the birth date of another influential Civil Rights activist who knew and worked with Dr. King. Dr. Maya Angelou, who also championed women’s rights, was born […]
Dear readers: I wrote and published this post four years ago. I am sharing it again as holiday nostalgia sweeps over me on this Easter weekend. My feelings and memories have not changed. Only one thing has; I lost Mom a year and a half ago. ••••• Do you feel it too? For me, holidays always bring back memories of the celebrations of my childhood. I can close my eyes today and see us so […]
After a long break, I’m returning to my online blogging class. Today’s assignment, my second-to-the-last, is a virtual coffee date. In this type of post, I am to share thoughts in the informal way I might if I were actually talking to a friend over a cup of coffee. So… I have brewed up two mugs of strong, hot Black Magic coffee. Let’s sit in my sunroom and chat. If we were having coffee […]
Editor’s note: I usually don’t believe in rerunning posts. Perhaps I should say, it’s fine for others, but I prefer to come up with something new for my own blog. But… it’s Veteran’s Day, and I want to acknowledge it. Because I haven’t come up with anything I like better, here is the post that I published four years ago today. I hope you’ll like it. My father, Carl Dierksen, tried very hard to […]
Where do you get the ideas you write about? Readers sometimes ask me this question. More often, though, I ask it of myself. Where did that idea even come from? And where can I find more of them? It’s a good question because it doesn’t have a simple, clear cut answer. Sometimes, my topic comes from a reader’s suggestion. Other times, I stumble into a situation and realize it would be fun to write about. […]
It was over a year ago that my brother, Craig, and his wife, Rosie, came to visit to help celebrate Mom’s 95th birthday. Mom (Marjorie) was living in memory care but was doing fairly well, considering. During that visit, we three “kids” began to talk in general terms about some day taking a cruise to Alaska maybe. The idea was planted but needed time to grow. On future visits for Mother’s Day and Mom’s 96th birthday, […]
Tomorrow will be a red-letter day here at Maples at the Sonatas. Actually, make that a red-box day, according to my calendar. But however you highlight it, the day will be significant. Tomorrow is Turnover Day, the moment when our community takes its next step toward completion. At a meeting tomorrow, our builder, Jamie Wilcox, will officially turn over the homeowners association to us, the homeowners. As is customary with construction, the builder […]
Fable: A short tale to teach a moral lesson, often with animals or inanimate objects as characters. Once upon a time, not too long ago, Joe and Sylvia adopted their sweet dog, Bandit, a loving, trusting soul. I already had Angie, an outgoing cat who loved to play. We decided to introduce them, hoping that a friendship would develop. In the beginning, it looked like we would get our wish. The two were curious about […]
For the past two months, I have wanted only to think or speak or write about two things: my mother’s death and the Chicago Cubs. I have talked a lot, maybe incessantly, about the Cubs, mainly because it’s easier on me and those around me to think about winning than dying. In the quiet places of my heart, though, I will remember the summer-turned-fall of 2016 as the time that Mom slowly, painfully failed, while […]
I lost my mom Sept. 7, two weeks after her 96th birthday. I keep reminding myself that she lived a very long, full life, with 95.5 of those years good quality time. That helps, to a point. I have no doubt that she is, as they say, in a better place. But this is a bewildering time of transitions for me. I’m working to let go of the images of her final week on earth […]
Therefore, send not to know For whom the bell tolls, It tolls for thee. —John Donne Nope, sorry, John Donne. You’ve written a nice poem, but you’re wrong. The school bell does NOT toll for me. Not anymore. I am R-E-T-I-R-E-D. Mr. Donne, I am done. ••• Tomorrow is the first day of the new school year in Woodstock. It will mark the 15th time that school has started without me. How does that make […]
This is the 21st Father’s Day I’ll spend without my dad. I haven’t done the math for quite a while. The number of years has sneaked up on me. But no matter how many third Sundays in June remain in my lifetime, I’m sure I will still feel that punch in the gut when I remember that he is gone. Physically gone. The photo below is the oldest I can find of the two of […]
If you just learn a single trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it. –Harper Lee, 1926-2016 One of my favorite books to teach was To Kill a Mockingbird. I didn’t count how many times I introduced a class of freshmen to Atticus, Scout, […]
Normally, I would not be happy to see this. It’s all a matter of perspective, though. In June, this is a yellow weed thumbing its nose at our landscapers. On Dec. 9, it is a lovely flower marking a winter warm spell. The dandelion got me thinking about other little things that have brought a smile to my face recently. Here are a few of them. 🙂 Yesterday in yoga class, my teacher was describing […]
“Honey, why did they do it?” I was having lunch with my 95-year-old mother on Nov. 14. Because of her dementia and poor hearing, she misses a lot of what is going on around her. But that day she caught a bit of conversation from the booth behind her as a couple talked about the Paris attacks. When she asked what they were talking about, I gave her the shortest, least threatening explanation I could. […]
Today I am pleased to welcome my first-ever guest blogger to Home Sweet Abbey. Joe Accardi, a friend, neighbor, and fellow writer, shares memories of the music that has shaped his life on Life Out of Tunes. This morning, both Joe and I commented on the same Facebook post about the anniversary of the Kennedy assassination. Seeing that, I realized we each had something to say about that fateful day. He agreed. Here is Joe’s […]
Home Sweet Abbey 