During my nine-day “Painted Canyons” tour of Utah’s parks, I refrained from accumulating national park stamps and souvenirs. Instead, I collected travel stories, some current and others dating back many years. Since we were with a bus group, I shared…
“Get away from that edge,” a woman warned my husband. He and I were part of a group living on the edge, touring Canyonlands, one of the five national parks we’d view in Utah over the next few days. The…
As an author and columnist, I’m often asked how I get my ideas. I get them from daily life. Ideas can come from something I’ve experienced, read about, a reflection, a tug at the heart, or something that strikes me…
Sometimes a person just needs to ignore the drudgery of the “to do” list and leave their burdens and worries behind. I took this advice and spent a carefree day “drifting” along with a group tour. I intended to set…
Transport Me My good friend Liisa Eyerly and I share many things in common including a love of writing, playing tennis and pickleball, and an appreciation for our Scandinavian heritage, but Liisa is way cooler than me. I might have…
The Friday of our local fall festival, Wo-Zha-Wa, I had a 2:30 appointment at the clinic because the last few days I had felt light-headed and dizzy. Ten days before that, swollen ankles prompted a visit. My blood pressure was…
I’m about to celebrate another birthday and as my grandmother used to say, I’m getting up there. Last month I picked out what will probably be my last kayak. An older person thinks about those things. It really isn’t so…
In Our Own Backyard Fifty years ago, Catherine Marshall’s book Christy had a profound effect on me. In my idealized view, I wanted to be just like Christy and help children who were dealing with poverty and other serious issues.…
Do you ever think about how your childhood, teen years, and high school experiences shaped the person you are today? After attending my husband Frank’s class reunion and hearing stories about his younger years, it’s easy to see how he…
I recently took my grandsons to Lake Delton’s school’s playground. When my older grandson asked me if I’d ever brought my students here, I told him I had. Years instantly melted away and memories, like welcoming ghosts, rose from the…