Ode to a Pheasant

I cannot say for certain when I first made his acquaintance or tell you the exact day he stole my heart.  We had just moved to a small town in Connecticut from New York City following the 9/11 tragedy.  Our new home’s family room sported an enormous glass window which overlooked the back yard, aContinue reading “Ode to a Pheasant”

The Lonely Sweater

Glancing in the window of a recently closed children’s consignment shop, I spotted this tiny orange sweater, hanging forlornly in the now abandoned store front.  This sad sight left me to ponder why this one vibrant item adorned in grinning teddy bears, remained. Perhaps a testament to a dream that was not to be orContinue reading “The Lonely Sweater”

Barbara Marshall

For Leslie “Mom, there’s a lady in the bushes,” said my six year old son nonchalantly. He sat fixated in front of the television, mesmerized by the dance moves of his very favorite group “The Wiggles,” icons of the ten-and-under set. The charismatic foursome clad in identical black pants and vividly colored tee shirts, wereContinue reading “Barbara Marshall”

Lovely Lily

It is a Friday, late afternoon, and I have just gotten off the school bus. Walking up the front path of my Long Island home, I hear laughter from inside, amid the whirr of a blender. Following the sound of merriment to the kitchen, I spot my mother and my Aunt Lily sitting together atContinue reading “Lovely Lily”

To David on his 60th Birthday

I hold a photograph in my hand. A picture from long ago. Though frayed and fading, it is one that tells a story. A melancholy tale of family, friendship, love and loss. And the unrelenting passage of time. I study the image taken with my father’s old Polaroid camera. Fifty years have come and gone,Continue reading “To David on his 60th Birthday”

Where have you gone, Uncle John?

I remember how he would greet us, his four young nieces, with a cock of his head and a shy smile. Then without fail, that playful wink of his eye. And every time he winked at me, I felt like the most important person in the world. On each and every visit to our LongContinue reading “Where have you gone, Uncle John?”

Amazing Grace

I remember her laugh. That mirthful, contagious laughter which often caused her eyes to well up with tears as she relayed one of her many tales. She loved a funny story. Some days I drive slowly down Catbrier Lane, past her old house. It holds new owners now, people I have never known. Her familyContinue reading “Amazing Grace”

Finding Mary

A visit to a cherished next door neighbor, fifty years later, revealed a surprising revelation; you can go home again…

A Mid-Summer’s Daydream

Standing amid a sea of tourists on the teeming Boulevard Saint Germain, I watch as the sidewalk artist works his magic on my sister, who sits posed before him. We are in Paris for the weekend, the result of an incredible airfare originating from Dublin, where we are spending two weeks of the summer withContinue reading “A Mid-Summer’s Daydream”