When I was growing up in a small town of Arkansas, I spent many cool summer evenings racing around the yard carrying a fruit jar in my hands. If you have to ask why, then you have missed out on a tradition of catching lightning bugs or called by many fireflies. The world turns into an enchanted evening as if tiny stars had fallen from the sky twinkling in the darken night.

 
The fireflies seem magical and even though there is a scientific answer (a chemical reaction occurs to make their spectacular light) I’d rather believe they are small fairies living in their own glittering world.

 



 

 

Happy Father’s Day

I was very fortunate to have a kind, gentle man, my granddad, Creath, in my life for 10 years, a man who built buildings, courthouses, dams, and bridges all around the south.

He had patience with a little girl who liked to talk and had way too much energy. He gave me the best gift you can give a child, time.

On warm summer days, we would take long, slow walks around our yard. He would stop under the apple tree and pick an apple, wipe it off and using his pocketknife he would peel it. Then, we would continue our walk and he would hand me slices of the apple. He allowed me to talk about anything that I wanted. 

He was a strong willed man, known around town that his word was his bond. But he was also a caring man, a man who would take time to watch animals and birds play, teaching me to slow down and enjoy life.

I miss Granddad and those days we spent together, but I will always cherish the memories.

Happy Father's Day!

Today is Mother's Day, a day of remembering your mom or someone that made a difference in your life. I was very lucky since I had a mother who gave me life and a grandmother who taught me about life. 

Mother's Day is a time to think about your love ones, the ones who are still with you and the ones that are in heaven. When I was a child my granddad would sit outside on our front porch and talk to the cardinals. The magnificent birds in the coats of red would fly down onto limbs in the old oak tree, only a few feet from him, and stay for the longest time. Yes, he would have a conversation with them and they would sing their beautiful songs. He would tell me to be quiet and listen. I did as he asked and sat quietly, which was difficult for me then & now, and listen. I have learned over the years that a cardinal is a representative of a loved one who has died. When I think back to those days so long ago sitting with my granddad on our front porch remembering the cardinal singing in the old oaks I have to believe that this folklore must be true. 

Today, Thanksgiving  is a day of memories. 
Every Thanksgiving I would travel home to a small green (that’s another story) concrete stucco home in Nashville, AR and visit with my grandmother, who I called Mamow, (another story). My Mamow died in 1994. 

This warm and inviting home was filled with memories of a young girl growing up in a small town where all the neighbors knew your name and welcomed you into their homes.

Each Thanksgiving we would arrive and my Mamow would have that little green home flowing with delicious smells of ham, chicken & dressing (she loved to cook with a hen, not a turkey) pumpkin & pecan pies, her special Patty's cake and fresh baked cornbread.

Many years ago 500 feet changed my life. 
November 20 began as a peaceful Sunday in the small town of Hope, Arkansas.  

My father William was a crop duster and loved to fly. This cool fall day a group of men had a meeting out in a field near the Hope, AR airport. One of the men was interested in a new red biplane.

The group of men, my mother, (who was eight months pregnant with me), & my brother stood out in the field watching as my father volunteered to test the plane. All was going well until the plane rose into the sky into an inverted roll that ​brought the beautiful plane to the ground.

TBT
This was me, back in 2000, when I lived in Bonita Springs, FL, a tired and happy grandmother. 

As you can see I had my hands full. I was holding my first grandchildren that happened to be two months apart. My little brown hair, dark brown eyed little boy and my blonde and blue eyed little girl.

 •••  Keep reading click read more below 

Legacy & Family

This is my grandmother, who I called Mamow, the strongest and most caring woman I’ve ever known. The woman who taught me I could do anything that I wanted to do in life and to never give up. 

She lost two husbands, two children, including my father, and lost her right hand in a factory accident at the age of 50, (you can see her missing right hand in this photo) working to put my father through college. She taught herself, after her accident, to sew, pen a cloth diaper on a baby by using her mouth, write with her left hand, (she was right handed) raise a garden, and was even able to can vegetables using just one hand, and never received a penny from disability. After my father and mother’s death, she took in my brother and me to care for, I was three years old at the time. 

She never owned a dishwasher or clothes dryer and always stayed busy mowing and working in her yard. 

Mamow you will always be missed and you will remain in my heart forever.



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WHY

Why is such a tiny word with only three letters, but one of the most powerful words in the world. As an adverb, it is used for what, for what reason, cause, or purpose. Why is a question concerning the cause or reason for which something is done, or achieved.

My husband’s grandmother, Maw Maw, a woman about 4’9” that weighed almost 200 lbs., would sit in her rocking chair in her apartment and say why, why, why. Why did she have to leave her home and move into an elderly care apartment, why do you have to get old, why doesn’t more family visit, why is it that the great tasting foods that you love to eat are the ones your doctor tells you not to eat? The list goes on and on and Maw Maw never stopped her questions of why. 

She even wanted the word WHY to be put on her tombstone. Then when people would walk past they would ask the question - why is the word WHY on that tombstone and the questions of why would continue on.

I’m sure you can think of many of your own whys. I sure can. Why can’t                   •••  Keep reading click read more Why