December light is the sun with a migraine
Technically, astronomically, the solstice lasts three days. Time stands still, sort of, before moving in the sun’s favor. So, technically, astronomically, I have two more days in which to dry wood and make a real fire.
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Not all holiday mementos are joyful
Yes, he broke my heart, but I survived it. And the ornament was a symbol of that survival.
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An old friend is the best friend
It was the fall of 1970, and we were freshmen in high school, that tender, socially feverish age when your friendships are everything and time stands still around every relationship.
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A forgotten novelist is remembered through music
Thomas Stribling won the Pulitzer Prize for a trilogy he wrote about Florence, Alabama. But when I was growing up in the 1960s, no one in Florence spoke of Stribling anymore.
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An unhandy DIYer considers the question of when to try again
In spite of my failures, I haven’t given up my handyman aspirations. I still believe I can fix things.
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A Memphis poet considers the legacy of his parents’ wise gift
At the close of the year I found myself thinking about one of the most wonderful, significant Christmas gifts I ever received. I was ten, and I got it because I didn’t get the thing I asked for first.
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