Two weeks ago, I had never heard of Bigfork, Montana.
Years ago, my mother had a navy-blue Crown Victoria — that car was like a large tank. I believe my parents must have installed an early model navigation system in the car because I’m pretty sure the car was too old to have one built in. That navig…
My husband and I have been on the road nearly a week. It’s the most highly edited trip we’ve ever taken. Routes and plans keep changing.
The call of the open road is like a siren to me.
The Vermilion River flows behind my home.
The quarantine/pandemic has offered more time to play games than my family has had for years. We’ve played loads of Scrabble and a multitude of other games too, but sometimes I like playing a game on my own, when I think back and try to identify a…
Piper, our younger daughter, started planning what her dorm room would look like before she started the process of deciding where she would go to college.
Facing uncertainty is exhausting.
In the moment, I met Piper, our baby girl, a string quartet was playing "Moon River." Nearly 18 years have passed since that Sunday night in a hotel lobby in Nanchang, China.
Much to my husband’s duress, we do not have a television in our living room.
In the third grade, I still tried to follow all the rules and finish all the assignments.
As we celebrate the anniversary of our nation’s independence, I’ve spent time dissecting a big realization I’ve had over the last week — which turned out to be easier than the time in 10th grade my lab partner and I used a tiny blade to find a fro…
“All the Gold in California” by The Gatlin Brothers is the only song I can sing harmony to on my own.
I wish I could take my dad to Piccadilly to celebrate Father’s Day.
After months of touchless, faceless exchanges while staying home, the past week has been fascinating, beautiful, full of lessons and also exhausting in its own way. It has been a week of origami, community, collecting and hanging cranes.
My children taught me how to fold origami cranes. They learned years ago from a Japanese babysitter named Jiro Hatano, who happened to be one of the smartest, kindest and most gentle people I’ve ever known.
About the time Piper, my now 18-year-old daughter, got her driver’s license, she hijacked my Spotify account.
I’ve gone for a 30-minute walk every day since the quarantine began. By now, a brisk walk is a habit. My walk last Saturday morning started out with a close encounter with a juvenile owl.
Delilah has been a steadfast quarantine companion.
What a shame that I’m not writing this Mother’s Day column before I had kids.
In the years to come, when we look back at the launch of the 2020 quarantine, I have a feeling that I’ll appreciate the way the pace of life changed considerably. I believe the thing I’ll remember most is the way, suddenly, our family spent countl…
Forty days and 40 nights.
This story I have to share requires some context:
Last week, my friend Rob Wise in Baton Rouge told me, “It’s like the world has hit control-alt-delete.”
Until now, I had only cried one other time during the COVID-19 experience — and that was when I first realized the extent of the crisis in Italy and watched a video of Pavarotti singing "Nessun dorma" from the opera "Turandot."
In all the scenarios I’ve ever considered when imagining surviving a global crisis, I never envisioned enduring such a thing with the sun shining, a mild breeze blowing, easy access to my temperature-controlled home, a comfortable sofa, full pantr…
Three weeks ago, I was talking to a friend as I ran from one meeting to the next. She was doing the same. We were both exhausted from going so fast, having obligations right and left and being spread in so many directions. We talked about the lack…
Last year, I read a book by Sofia Segovia called “The Murmur of Bees.” Originally written in Spanish and translated into English, the story is set during the Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918. When I read the book, I was struck by how little I kn…
I was pushing my shopping buggy by the broccoli when it happened.
Last spring, I won a writing fellowship. It was a thing of beauty and gave me the opportunity to focus on writing and have less responsibility than I’ve had in decades. Additionally, I made great friends with my cohorts.
For the past 20 years, my dad has had a series of Rottweilers — three, to be exact.
My mom called right after the game ended.
Our oven went out with a bang in November. Getting a new one has, much to our surprise, turned out to be more complicated than expected. I took our oven for granted. I didn’t even know it was what is called a downdraft oven. Now, I understand more…
Having a king cake party was not an original idea, but a lack of originality takes nothing away from the experience. My friends and I are not complaining.
Recognizing that life is changing in real time imbues a curious quality to the every day.
Last week, we invited friends to join us for a Henry Ford-style assembly line tamalada, which is a bigger production than those who have not participated might imagine. Even so, in my mind, there is no question as to who does the hard work.
The Vermilion River runs alongside the edge of my backyard. Watching the river run is one of the greatest gifts of my life. I believe one of the unfortunate planning aspects of Lafayette is that more people don’t have access to public places to si…
Around these parts, those with birthdays this week get short changed. No matter how hard I try as a mom, celebrating Piper, my younger daughter’s birthday, which falls a few days before Christmas, does not match the rest of the family birthday cel…
Some of my favorite days are the ones that take me places I never expected. Wednesday was one of those days. I left my house headed for Baton Rouge, with the primary intent of beating the 5 p.m. traffic. Instead, I found myself at Mel’s Diner on J…
Two weeks ago, I read about an unusual astrological event called the Unicorn Meteor Shower. I realized from the start that an astronomer had given an ancient rare phenomenon a cool name to get it attention — and it worked. I read about the meteor …
Based on the impact Camp Wahi made, I have a difficult time believing I only went there for a one-week session long ago. The week made a serious impression and continues to enrich my life.
I should have stopped her and explained the real definition of sappy, but she was on a roll. Piper, our 17-year-old daughter, and I were discussing November as National Adoption Month.
I’ve had the lyrics for a country song rolling around in my head for 12 years.
Both of my daughters, ages 17 and 22, believe they are in their own words, “woke.” Like every generation before them, they believe they have insights and are enlightened in the ways of the world that are simply unattainable for either of their par…
In full disclosure, I have never watched a single episode of ESPN's "College GameDay." However, this season, thanks to my friend, Matt Jones, I’ve had a vested interest in the show, particularly in what the commentators are wearing.
Two weeks ago, I wrote a column about the biscuits my mother made nearly every morning of my childhood, their deliciousness, their being my ultimate comfort food. I also admitted that though I love cooking and am typically willing to try anything,…
Piper, our 17-year-old daughter, appreciates her vehicle more than most.
I am not an early riser by nature, but on Wednesday morning, I voluntarily got up at 6:15 a.m. My mama, Nelda Risher, was visiting and made homemade biscuits. She had already buttered the hot-out-of-the-oven-cast-iron-skillet-cooked biscuits.
After 10 weeks at sea, on Oct. 12, 1492, a sailor aboard the Pinta, one of Christopher Columbus’ sailing ships, saw land. In recent years, much of the glory bestowed upon Columbus for centuries has dissipated. Even still, thanks to Columbus, this…
My phone blipped to let me know an old friend sent a message. I was between meetings and had a few minutes to spare. I hadn’t seen her for a while and was looking forward to hearing from her. Her message read: