I do a lot of dishes at our house. I’m pretty good at it. However, once in a while, when Sherry gets bothered by some little misstep by me, she takes a water glass down from the cupboard and examines it by the sunlight coming through our kitchen window. Anyone experienced at …
Nobody knows what I’m talking about but when a photographic opportunity pops up today, I always shout, “Get your camera, Vern!” I used to hear this phrase when my mother would see something that few folks recognized as memorable. She would shout, “Get your camera, …
I’ve been reading a bunch about this whole aging thing. Also, I have about 20 friends who are marching along with me toward their 80s and above. While journaling last evening, an interesting observation hit me. One way of looking at aging is, we all are no longer [fill in …
I’m spoiled. I admit it. One pleasure I have in the middle of winter is a tiny greenhouse in my backyard. It’s not much for growing flowers or vegetables, but it feels so good to be me when I’m sitting in my broken chair, sipping hot chocolate with marshmallows and listening …
I’m not much for framing quotes and sticking them on my wall. Yet, there is one exception. For nearly 40 years, I’ve had this famous quote from our 26th President close to me and my heart: “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man …
My friends and colleagues who have reached the age of 70 or beyond appear to have little interest in the topic of death. I’m a different kind of guy. It might be because twice in my last eight years, I thought I was making a grand exit. For me, neither time was a scary …
Yesterday morning, I stubbed my big toe on the ceramic frog that guards my bedroom door. It hurt. A lot. Two hours later, I receive a call from my friendly banker saying one of my accounts is overdrawn. How can that be? I study my checkbook to see how the bank screwed up. …
One journal question I posed to my mom was, “What did kids do for fun living on the farm?” From Irene: I’m sure we had more fun than the town kids. That’s why they would stay with us on the weekends. We’d jump down from the haymow into the mangers below filled with straw for …
Shortly before my mom and dad died in 1999, I created tailored journals for them to chronicle their lives as children and young adults. I cherish their stories today as I match their memories with pictures I have of them back on their farms in central Iowa. Below are a few …
It’s challenging for me to figure out when it’s time to kick back or press forward. I’ll bet many of you are asking yourselves the same question. On some sunny days, I think I should spend the rest of my life frolicking with my dogs, going on leisurely hikes in the …
