People sometimes tell me the heirlooms given to me hold no value over how my heart feels, but these things have memories—stories of where they’ve come from—that tug at my heart. They’re scattered about my home, adorning it as subtle nostalgic strings upon which travel the finest emotions of bygone days. Grammy’s cookie jar sits […]
February 13 – My Plate is Full
I recently discovered two of my grandmother’s delicate China dessert plates and was suddenly filled with a rush of childhood memories of the weekends I spent at Grammy’s house. On Saturday mornings, she woke me extremely early—5:30 a.m., to be exact. “Time’s a wastin’,” she said, yanking the covers off me. I grumbled because, unlike […]
January 9 – Driving Through My Old Neighborhood
As I drive through my old neighborhood, I don’t just see the familiar cookie-cutter houses or the elementary school I went to with all my friends. I see a simpler, safer time. I see my childhood. I park my car in front of my childhood home and get out. I pause, for even now I […]
December 18 – Of Christmases Past
It gradually turned chilly between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Although Frosty the Snowman rarely visited our part of Texas, his pal, Jack Frost, surely did. He wafted his way through our drafty house, chased by welcome bursts of heat from the floor furnace—a metal floor grate that funneled heat from the living room to the rest […]
November 13 – This Old House
The old house, built in 1895, has hugged North Rogers Street from days of horses to days of horse-powered engines. As the story goes, Granddad purchased the old house by merely signing his name on a piece of paper. He added indoor plumbing and a garage, remodeled the inside, and replaced the roof—a roof that […]
October 9 – The Thimble People
As a child, I thought Mother’s red and cream sewing basket was a treasure chest waiting to be explored. When I thought she wasn’t looking, I’d sneak into her bedroom and remove the basket from its hiding place atop her closet shelf. “Open Sesame!” I’d say, lifting the lid, revealing a trove of sewing notions. […]