I was up late last night, pondering the meaning of Mother’s Day. I learned this, from National Geographic: It all started in the 1850s, when West Virginia women’s organizer Ann Reeves Jarvis held Mother’s Day work clubs to improve sanitary conditions and try to lower infant mortality by fighting disease and curbing milk contamination, according to … read more The mother of Mother’s Day
Author: Lisa
German engineering
I own a very fine piece of German engineering that I really treasure. It’s not Xena the BMW (which belongs to Tom). Although, this object has some of the same strength, grace and power in its design that Xena does. It’s my meat grinder. It belonged to my mother, and I think she got it as … read more German engineering
Big brown jug
My sisters and I long ago stopped buying each other gifts for birthdays and Christmas. I think we all hate the process of shopping for presents because, when you live far apart, it’s a guessing game with too many wrong answers. There’s one gift that my sisters will accept any time of the year, though. It’s always … read more Big brown jug
A walk on the wild side
Toland Way is a very steep, winding road. It’s a tough walk up. This time of year, though, it’s worth the strain on my legs and back. The flowering plants are bountiful all along the steep banks of this road. Perhaps the soil is richer, gathering all the minerals that get washed down the mountainside. … read more A walk on the wild side
Four dead in Ohio
I was only 10 years old, but I remember seeing the newspaper front page with the story about the students being shot. The late 1960s were strange and difficult years to be a kid. Adults shouting at each other about the Vietnam War. My older sisters wearing “love beads” and going to “coffee houses,” which seemed to garner an … read more Four dead in Ohio
The cautious wren
The Carolina wren is a cheeky little bird. It produces song at an earsplitting volume, and will build a nest right on your front porch. At the cabin in Booger Hollow, we have a spot that’s been used by wrens for several years. The first year that we spent a week at the cabin, we … read more The cautious wren
Cats in the wild
An argument’s been raging in Georgia for years now. The believers are fierce and will cuss you out for questioning them. The non-believers are dismissive and condescending. I guess I’m a wanna-believer. This isn’t politics or religion. We’re talking cats. Big Cats. Some people say that there are still Big Cats roaming North Georgia. Cougars, or … read more Cats in the wild
Little squealers
As we were driving out of the Chattahoochee National Forest yesterday, two little brown dogs suddenly popped out and began crossing the road. Then they turned – and they weren’t dogs. They were PIGLETS. Furry, with brown stripes. When they saw us in Xena and heard the growl of her engine, they squealed and went flying down … read more Little squealers
FIRE PINK!!!
There is one flower that I anticipate all year long. In every season, when I drive past its patch on the way home, I say “Hi, fire pink!” to the bare dirt. When mid-April rolls around, I start looking closely at that dirt. It’s a steep, rocky bank that rises up from a very curvy piece … read more FIRE PINK!!!
The other secret garden
I finally had a chance to visit the second secret garden of lady slippers in the forest. I missed them last year. The first year when I found them, I monitored their health anxiously. I was worried that someone would discover them and dig them up. But unlike the other patch of lady slippers, they are … read more The other secret garden