My sister Jo was a reader. With the family parked outside the post office Joan took the farm mail and never lifting her eyes from the page walked up the familiar steps, disappeared inside, reappeared, and still reading felt her way down to the car. We all watched as she reached for the handle and […]
Poetry
Posted inPoetry
Recovery
My friend Annette’s sons, playing pirate, many years ago, buried all the jewelry in her jewelry box in the backyard. Years later, contrite, the now much older pirates dug and dug but never unearthed the buried treasure. I have just heard from Annette that last fall when she was planting tulips she had dug up […]
Posted inPoetry
Goodies Detour
Summers we went to a small lake near Beloit. Mom wanted to keep us kids away from farm machinery. We took my goat; she was a nuisance on the farm. When we walked along the cottage row on our side of the lake we had to put the goat in our rowboat and row her […]
Posted inPoetry
Revenge
We lived on the home farm when we were small My brother and I found a nearby ditch piled with trash and garbage. Daddy sent out a farm hand to clean it up. We watched while Ed shoveled the mess into the back of a pickup. “Aha!” he cried finding several empty envelopes. We drove […]
Posted inPoetry
Violin Lessons
My sister Pat, a gifted Violinist gave lessons at her home, she also taught her daughters. My niece Jackie Jo says when her lesson time arrived she had to put on her hat and coat gather up her fiddle in its case along with her music, went outside and knocked at the front door, just […]
Posted inPoetry
Award
I was a counselor (girls period) at Phantom Lake Y Camp I took my goat, still a kid. The campers all joined the “Rocky Club” to keep Rocky out of trouble. They could not keep her from skidding out onto the dock during swimming, sometimes even falling in! The last night of camp when all the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Astronomer
A tribute to Charles Schweighauser, a University of Illinois professor emeritus of astronomy and physics who died July 14 at the age of 88. We audited Charlie’s classes from Mercury to the Oort Cloud and beyond; we helped burn his prairie so that new prairie could prosper. We kept secret where his telescope, (state-of-the-art) was […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Found Poem
I was a counselor (girls period) at Phantom Lake Y Camp I took my goat, still a kid. The campers all joined the “Rocky Club” to keep Rocky out of trouble. They could not keep her from skidding out onto the dock during swimming, sometimes even falling in! The last night of camp when all the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Bad night
My dad, a camper at Phantom Lake Y Camp, went on a “night-hike” with his tent mates. “We stood in a line,” said Dad. “Holding onto a rope in one hand and a blanket in the other. Our counselor led us for miles, to some field or other, told us to spread out our blankets […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Letter On Expenses
The following is in a brief letter from my grandfather when his son (my uncle) was a college freshman: “My dear boy Trever, I have received your letter listing your accounts for the next semester I notice you do not plan on eating for a month so I will include some extra in case you […]
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Another Letter From Grandpa
“My Dear boy Trever, regarding your studies And coming exams I want to say steady boy, Don’t be afraid, fear will beat you. You have done good honest work and if you should fail I have nothing against you. You have made a good fight. If you were to fail because of sporting and bumming […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Found Poem
Another Letter From My Grandpa My grandpa wrote this letter to his second son who is at college: “My Dear Boy Trever You have a great day outlined for me and I am sure I would enjoy every bit of it. But I cannot come. We are building the floor tomorrow between the milk house […]
