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Weddings and Funerals: Changing Relationships with Family and Friends
Most people will say they love their family and closest friends. I’m no different. I love them all dearly. But, like many people, I don’t see them often since we live in different towns, and the COVID-19 Pandemic didn’t help matters. But hasn’t it always been that way? In the olden days, people either stayed in one town their whole lives or ventured off to the wild frontier, only communicating in letters. Back then, moving away might mean never seeing family and friends again. At least in more modern times, we have phones and other electronic ways to communicate—if and when we make time to reach out. Family trees My…
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When Unexpected Blessings Come in the Form of Two Puppies
My family was originally a one-dog family that became a two-dog family by chance. When Buddy passed away, leaving us with only Peanut, we chose to adopt Roscoe three months later because our fur-baby family didn’t feel complete anymore. And that was it. We were done—no more dogs—until life happened. Two starving pups needed a home I grew up just outside of Benton, where my mother still lives, about 80 miles away from where I live now. I talk to my mom daily and try to visit when I can. This spring and summer, she’s had some health issues, so I’ve been to her house more frequently. At the beginning…
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I’ve been old (but not necessarily wise) my whole life
I’ve been thinking a lot about aging lately. I just turned 43, and that plants me firmly in middle agedom. But in reality, I think I’ve been old my whole life. Age vs. Maturity Interesting/Funny story: My mom visited a psychic for fun when I was a small child, and I didn’t hear about it until I was older. The lady told my mom some things that were hard to hear, like that my dad would die from the cancer he was fighting. Another thing she told my mom was about me. She described me as a “little adult” who was well-spoken and would grow up to be artistic. The…
