Anticipatory Grief by Debbi Welch FollowFollowFollow Isn’t good old-fashioned grief enough? Loss, tears, the flooding of memories? I’ve grieved and am still grieving my mother, father, stepfather, and brother, as well as many other relatives and dear friends. I’ve sat...
Sonata by Julie Lockhart FollowFollowFollow C-sharp (#): Compositions in a minor scale, such as Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata in C# Minor,” can evoke a misty evening of sad contemplation, moody ruminations, even grief. When Michael lived with me before we married, I...
Grandma Helen by Stacy Alderman FollowFollowFollow The only picture I’d ever seen of my maternal grandmother was her wedding portrait. Its muted hues, her close-lipped smile, the bundle of blooms in her hands, were spread in canvas across a 10×12 frame, and this...
Educating Grandma by Marilyn Morgan FollowFollowFollow A product of the fifties, I grew up with Donna Reed, Pat Boone, and the most daring heartthrob of all, Elvis Presley. So when my fifteen-year-old granddaughter, Lia, said to me, “Grandma, I’m not a girl,” I felt...
Drawing Blood by Sherry Stratton FollowFollowFollow Blood draws have been hard on me my whole life. The medical techs tell me my veins are small. Sometimes they resort to a pediatric needle. And I’ve learned there’s such a thing as a “butterfly needle.” Once, I was...
Fight Like a Girl by Justine Payton FollowFollowFollow CW: sexual violence The man who settled himself between my legs was twice my size. I immediately felt suffocated beneath the pressure of his weight, each inhale rattling against my throat. I was aware of...
