All I know to do is wait. Wait, pray, ask for help, and hold these feelings. I messed up on the computer. It means my pictures, documents, and files may be lost. I have a saving place, but I have not backed up anything in a year or more. I planned on waiting until I’d finished this manuscript before backing everything up. I finished the manuscript several days ago. I did not back it up. Saved in the computer, but no back-up. I was waiting for the final edit. You know how a ho

“Good question. I write because I must.” Later, when I am alone, I ponder the question. Why do I write? Writing certainly gobbles up my time. Takes me away from family, friends, housework. It’s as if I have been called to write my observations: a brilliant sunset seen through dark branches of a tree, the husband’s hat, my journey through cancer, walls I build up, walls I tear down. It’s like a map of my experiences. Not always easy to look at. I share what I write, but it sti

Four people were sitting together under the television on the wall. I sat where I could watch the weatherman showing maps. Five minutes later, I asked, “Did the weatherman say ice and maybe snow?” The man responded, “Yes, and it looks like it’s coming our way.” “Let’s hope it’s not like the ice storm of 2009. We were without power for 12 days,” I responded. “We were, too! Two full weeks!” one said. One lady in the group carefully stood up after hearing her name called. Everyo

(The writing of this blog follows the viewing of a moving documentary called Touched by Auschwitz and a bad dream.) When I was young, my family lived in either a town or city with houses all around us. We had a small garden, neighborhood friends, a corner grocery, and an elementary school. But we did not have a dog. “No,” Daddy said a hundred times. “Too much trouble.” Over the years, I came to believe dogs were too much trouble. My husband, on the other hand, had a precious