It’s the time of year when most of us make the trek to the scene of our origins. It’s a return to where we grew up, or where the siblings that we’re still speaking to reside, or where our parents—if they’re alive— might still be hosting a neutral setting for others to come together. When […]
Posts in the Childhood category:
Writing the Nightmares
This morning I awakened at four, as is not uncommon for me. I rolled over and thought happy thoughts, took a few deep belly breathes and fell back asleep, only to reawaken two hours later with a vivid nightmare shaking me by the shoulders. Writing the Nightmares When I attended The Magic of Memoir conference […]
Sit With Us App
The Sit With Us app was announced yesterday, creating a subtle but ground-breaking way for lonely teens to connect in lunch rooms without calling attention to themselves. 16-year-old Natalie Hampton designed the Sit With Us smartphone application in response to the feelings that she experienced when she spent her entire 7th grade year eating lunch […]
The Setting in Your Manuscript
When I was in fifth grade I read a book with a vivid salt-sprayed setting on the coast of Maine, a mysterious place a few hours drive from where we lived in inland Massachusetts. The author’s words described it in great detail and I entered her world vicariously. The marsh grass swept the tips of […]
National Teacher Day
May 3 is National Teacher Day. In Kindergarten, we were asked what we wanted to be when we grew up. Girls were given the choice of mother, nun, nurse, or teacher—not necessarily in that order. We had to say our choice aloud. I knew that mother—from what I had witnessed thus far—was not a very […]
The Scent of Writing
The scent of writing is all around me this morning in the form of a bouquet of lilacs. Yesterday, I placed the Mason jar bouquet on the shelf next to my bed, where I begin my morning reading and writing with my first cups of coffee. The scent of lilacs. How that returns me to […]
Norman Rockwell and the Dolls
The Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge had only three cars in the parking lot on this cool wintry-looking April day. I parked, knowing that I’d enjoy the luxury of having the museum almost entirely to myself. I tried to get here on a couple of other days, but made the mistake of beginning to write […]
Snowstorm
A spring snowstorm arrived overnight in the Berkshires, triggering more childhood memories. Haven’t lived where snow is a regular event for more than twenty-five years. There was plenty of warning. We all knew the snow was coming. I went to the Stop & Shop yesterday afternoon. Stocked up on groceries for a couple days’ worth […]
Hiking the Appalachian Trail
Yesterday, I accidentally found myself hiking the Appalachian Trail. How does one “accidentally” hike the Appalachian Trail? By hiking a trail that overlaps the A.T. for a short distance. Pleasant surprise! I’m here in western Massachusetts visiting relatives for the Easter holiday. Under Saturday’s brilliant sky, I went looking for a trail to hike. Decided […]
More Editing
Three days after creating my chapter and scene notecards, I’m making sense of my category and themes, ready to continue editing. The category is Coming of Age. The themes were not so obvious to me. However, when you simplify the contents of your childhood into a patchwork pattern on a table, suddenly the themes that […]