Odd to realize I've achieved it That sense of time State of mind The zen masters describe as "the continuous unfolding of the present moment" Waiting in line to enter Trader Joe's. Six feet apart, Too distant for idle chatter There is no hurry No deadline Waits for me at home. (Save maybe ... another cup… Continue reading Zen Mind
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Cutting the Vines
The porch overlooks a pink azalea Where a brilliant red cardinal perches. Now that we're sheltering we are dealing with things like this: That the bush is being strangled. The closer I get the worse it looks A puzzle, a knotty mess Not unlike my daughter's cross-stitch which we also tackled today So labyrinthine we… Continue reading Cutting the Vines
Slow and Steady and the Race: A Fable for the Rest of Us
He woke up early the day of the race. Not too early – the training plan advised keeping as close to a regular routine as possible – just in time to down a shake with the perfect protein to carb ratio and let it digest a bit. At the race start, he enlisted a helpful… Continue reading Slow and Steady and the Race: A Fable for the Rest of Us
River Run
I visited the river after the flood. How do you like your new pathways? I asked. To the south, a whole new flow had rutted out the valley floor, laying bare roots and root systems, hidden boulders, snake dens. I don't like it, the river said. It hurts. I'm not used to flowing that way. I'm… Continue reading River Run
Mistaken Ivy
Dear Karen, Remember when we went for that walk in the woods last week, and you asked if that patch of vines was poison ivy, and I told you very confidently that they were not? Well, Christopher just told me that they were. Are. And here I've been, wondering where those little stripes of it… Continue reading Mistaken Ivy
Should
I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I should I… Continue reading Should
Flat Tire Karma
Yesterday, dropping off a food delivery at 12 Baskets, a young man I recognized from meals there approached me and asked if I had a tire jack. I didn’t think so, I said. You have a flat? Yeah, and I have to somehow get to the tire place. Where’s the tire place, I asked, thinking… Continue reading Flat Tire Karma
Jacob*
I thought of Jacob recently, flashed to a memory of him standing in the small kitchen of my one-bedroom, head tilted slightly, saying shyly, "I know a really good way to cook bacon." He put the bacon in a saucepan, covered the bottom with water, baked it until the fat dribbled out. Broiled it to… Continue reading Jacob*
No Ordinary Watermelon
“This guy is just really passionate about melons," one of the lunch guests told me. "It’s all he talks about. And you think, how can you care so much about melons? But he just has this thing about bringing so much joy to others – through melon – and when you hear him talk about… Continue reading No Ordinary Watermelon
Writing for Chocolate 