It’s Susanna’s birthday today. She was born sixteen years ago, during a deep freeze and snowstorm. The pipes froze while she was arriving, but the iron boiler installed in the kitchen of our new basementless home chugged on. The ice clogs within the pipes dissolved soon after, and Cesar washed the pile of dishes… Continue reading Unfrozen
Tag: child loss
“I’m Here”: A Fictional Halloween Story (2022)
It would be nice to feel sad when you want to, instead of when you do. I am sad again. I have a lot going on, more to be revealed in future blogs. I am searching for and finding various places where I belong in the world. One thing I know is that Susanna brought… Continue reading “I’m Here”: A Fictional Halloween Story (2022)
Susanna, the Sheep and My iPad
This photo just popped up from my cloud: Susanna, in a red and white gingham dress, was talking to a sheep. Speckled beige wool poked through a wire cage at the Prospect Park Zoo. We had just fed the ducks and chickens. Over and over, we dropped quarters upon quarters into the corn and… Continue reading Susanna, the Sheep and My iPad
Palisades, and Screaming
The Palisades were in front of me, “New Jersey’s Grand Canyon”. Formed 200 million years ago, they were named by native people for rows of trees, Europeans for fence posts. In the fall, the cliffs are blotted with iridescent blobs of foliage in photos. I feel like I have painted them a million times. I… Continue reading Palisades, and Screaming
Susanna’s Golden Mouse
At first, I was the only one who had seen the mouse. A flash of golden fawn, confusing. The first time was under the sink by the garbage can, followed by twice in my son’s room, on and around the old, crappy, black futon with built in storage. We have had many a mouse… Continue reading Susanna’s Golden Mouse
The Good Things of the World
There are drills, as there now are in every school. We call them “lockdown” but they might also be known as “active shooter” drills. I wonder about the missing pieces in the plan, such as how we cannot put full grown students in wheelchairs into cupboards to hide them. We can not silence students who… Continue reading The Good Things of the World
Strega Nona and the Golden Ball
Strega Nona is an alter-ego of mine. She was a “strega”, an herbalist and a witch. A crone, nestled in rich old Italian locale and culture, using her wisdom to help others through magic (which is my biggest aspiration right now). Being that Tomie dePaolo’s original story was published in 1975, it is possible that… Continue reading Strega Nona and the Golden Ball
Susanna's Golden Ball 