fall

William and his lady-friend Harper acting adorably fresh on a carriage ride at Busch Gardens

Photos by Billy

This time of year in Virginia has got me all over again….
William keeps saying it’s raining leaves
and Billy’s in love with the light.
As for me, I swoon at the simple, stark contrast of it:
brightness and gray, crispness and warmth, side by side.

If you didn’t get a chance to read it at Salome Magazine, please feel free to print out and read the Water Cave—one of my coming to coming of age middle school stories—here!

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Raliegh

Billy’s Grandmother and I, in the hospital

Photo by Billy

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Grandmother

Photo by Billy

Billy’s Grandmother is in the hospital again. This woman amazes me: 80-something years old and far sharper than I am, even on my sharpest days. And shrewd and funny and hard and gentle in good measure. At our wedding she danced with my brother; when he dipped her it seemed like a hundred years of history toppled.

Worried we drove to Raleigh, and found a hospital room full of family: aunts, uncles, cousins, and one cheerful mylar balloon which entertained William for hours. We realized that hospital food isn’t all that bad if you’re two (Grandmother shared steamed carrots and spiraled noodles). We learned that Billy garnered many of his parenting skills from his uncle Randy who is a cut-up and a clown (literally).

We learned, or relearned, or tried to wrap our minds around the simple fact that bodies are designed to fail; that in the end we loss everything. But maybe even that inevitable final loss—the pain and messiness of it—is made more bearable by community and love.

The last part of my short story, The Water Cave, is online this week at Salome Magazine. Read it all here .

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sweet music part III

In this final of the stringed instrument-video-trio, William and I chat band stuff while he strums,video by me

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sweet music part II

William playing ‘Robot Baby’ on the Ukulele, short and sweet!
Video by Billy

icing on the (cup)cake

William eating the icing off a delicous Cappellinos Cupcake at Sarah and Jeremy’s lovely fall wedding

Photos by Colleen

Part II of my short story, The Water Cave, is online this week at Salome Magazine. Check it out here if you get a chance!

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sweet music part I

William and Billy rocking the ABC’s on the ukulele.

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the water cave

William and Carla playing through glass
Photo by Billy

I’m excited to have one of my middle school stories, The Water Cave, published serially at Salome Magazine (a lovely on-line magazine) throughout this month.

I remember getting the idea for this story. Driving over the mountain with Billy to Harrisonburg, to visit the town where we both went to college. Billy was telling me about going off to this water cave, alone with a girl he barely knew, his first year at JMU. Immediately I imagined my own characters, prepubescent kids, dipping their toes in freezing water, submerging.

Anyhow, here’s an excerpt. Check out the whole of Part I at Salome Magazine here if you get a chance, and let me know what you think.

The next morning, when Lannie goes outside, Sara waves her over to the other side of the patio. Without sunglasses on, Lannie can plainly see Sara’s bright gray eyes. Ten o’clock and it’s already sweltering. A thin sheen of sweat sparkles on Sara’s skin.

You know it’s not real, right? Sara says. That cave we were talking about.

Lannie almost says, It is real. Is so. But she catches herself.

Maybe Sara is just looking out for her, like a big sister would. Maybe Sara Parson is the kind of girl Lannie wants to become.

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