Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill: Can you believe that somebody wanted to interview me? Me? I’m all the time interviewing other people around in Hollyhill for the paper, but I never expected anyone to want to interview me. And not for the Hollyhill Banner, but for some other magazine or something. Wes says I must be famous, and …
Valentine’s Day is coming. Girls everywhere are thinking of romance and guys are wondering which flowers will make their special girls happy. Or candy. Or whatever they hope will bring smiles. But Valentine’s Day isn’t only for the romantic couples. It can be fun for kids and old folks and all folks. Love comes in many flavors. I’m sending out …
I used to enjoy reading Erma Bombeck’s newspaper articles and her books. She had a way of making me laugh and at the same time, helping me see the good along with the silly in family life. This list that has been passed around on the internet for years popped up again the other day. So, I’m sharing it with …
Two of my books, These Healing Hills and An Appalachian Summer have Frontier Nursing Service history. Mary Breckinridge established this service in Leslie County, Kentucky in the 1920’s with a vision of bringing better healthcare to mothers and children. Mrs. Breckinridge had a heart for children and she put feet to her dreams and made a difference in the lives of many of the …
“A snow day literally and figuratively falls from the sky—unbidden—and seems like a thing of wonder.”</strong> ~Susan Orlean I didn’t get my post done last night and so I took you for a walk with me on the new fallen snow this morning. Not much snow. Maybe 2 inches, but however much it was, it coated all the tree limbs …
We will never finish everything on our to-do lists. It’s not possible, and that is life! ~Susan L. Taylor Do you make lists of things you want to get done? I do. Sometimes then I do lose those lists in the papers that seem to reproduce on my desk. I might come across the list weeks or even months later …
Wednesday slipped by me. I don’t know about you all, but so much staying at home during this pandemic has me sometimes having to think twice about what day it is. Then, I did have final edits show up for my upcoming book, Along a Storied Trail, releasing June 1st, that also knocked me off schedule. I know, excuses, excuses. …
Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other. –Walter Elliot (1888-1958), Scottish politician Sometimes when I give a talk about writing, I’m asked what characteristic is most valuable to a writer. I can’t really answer that for everybody, but for me it has to be perseverance, that stubborness in my will center that …
At some point, you have to sit down and face the page alone. At some point, the final decisions need to be yours. At some point, you have to give yourself deadlines and stick to them. ~John McNally I’ve begun my next book. My deadline looms out there and even though it’s a few months away, those months will slide …
You will enrich your life immeasurably if you approach it with a sense of wonder and discovery, and always challenge yourself to try new things.” –Nate Berkus Have you ever wanted to try something new? Even if you weren’t really sure you could do whatever it was? I suppose we’ve all met challenges like that. Perhaps when we first sat …