Words from the Heart

Easters from the past - moments captured in time as we stand in our Sunday best.  How the years have flown since I was the little girl with the cute hat and big smile.  Now, I enjoy my grandchildren, not always on Easter, but close enough.   E aster Memories - The Neas Family at Castle Island 1963   Easter with my brothers - 1963 My Mom and Girls - Easter 1984 Cold and windy Easter week with grandchildren 2012 May the grace of this season of renewal and rebirth wrap you in hope and joy.  Namasté!

When I was a little girl and TV was still in black and white, my mother was addicted to Days of Our Lives , a soap-opera, which aired on one of the network channels. As a young mother and flower child transplanted to an Air Force base on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, I longed for something to help me feel at home.  One afternoon, as my two-year old slept, I flipped through the channels to find Days still going strong!  Many of the characters were still there, but I noticed this newbie, Liz Chandler, played by actress, Gloria Loring.  The first thing that grabbed me was Gloria's sparkling, impish eyes, and then she sang!  I was hooked. I watched Days off and on for many years, but Liz was always my favorite female character. A few weeks ago, I got my Women on Writing newsletter.  As I read that they were hosting a blog tour for Gloria Loring, I wonder if this was THE Gloria Loring from Days. To my delight, I learned that indeed, this was one and the same ...

I am so excited to share a recent interview with Julie Cavacco, author of a new children's book, "My Worst Best Friend."  She is a Children's Librarian (12 yrs) and former substitute (15 yrs). Julie has become dedicated to getting the right book into a student's hands. She says, "There is so much self esteem wrapped up into when and how we start reading. I have seen the natural, and not necessarily bad, competition of first graders talking about how they can read Harry Potter. The delayed reader can't join in on that conversation, and eventually, they notice the difference, which effects self esteem and eventually classroom behavior."  Julie's own two kids, now adults, were not early dedicated readers, but, she says, they had the skills. "I've seen them, as teenagers, ignore electronics with all the bells and whistles in favor of a good book. Now, they can join in on conversations, because reading has bolstered their vocabula...

  Women's Int ernational League USA - 19 22 National Photo Company [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons   Greetings, Women of the World! Today is our day!   Well, at least that is what it says on the calendar. So, in celebration of women everywhere, I thought I would share some poems, mine and others, on women. This first poem was written several years ago in praise of a dear friend, who loves in such a way that everyone feels as if they are her best friend. HANNAH’S VALENTINE Everyday is Valentine’s For those within her world. Like her colonial red door with it’s heart shape window - Shining, Her heart is open - Always. Inside her kitchen’s Filled with warmth And recipes to nourish - Body and soul - A pinch of love, A dash of joy, Heaping cups of hugs! Everyday is Valentine’s - Hannah makes it so!   ©1991 LMRN This poem, my mother read to me as a little girl. The poet captures the life of many women in such a few lines. ...