Yes, I am surprised that it is nearly 2023. So much has happened this year in our world, while at the same time so much has not. In my personal life, though? So much change. I celebrated my second Christmas without Mom and my eighth without Dad. As I share and listen with friends, more … Continue reading End of year ruminating
memoir
A gift for Father’s Day
I haven’t before pitched My Music Man as a Father’s Day story, a gift to give a father or someone who’s missing a father or loves their own father. And yet, readers have told me my memoir is just that. Not that your father was like my father or that your relationship was like mine, … Continue reading A gift for Father’s Day
Savoring summer
As I launched my kayak into the Willamette early this morning, the air felt different. The sun still promised to bring heat in the encroaching hours, yet, a hint of fall was in the air. The bald eagle soaring above me shared no signal that September was near. An osprey, circling above me as if … Continue reading Savoring summer
What’s happening on February 14?
Yes, perhaps you plan to celebrate Valentine's Day with someone special. Newcomers to Oregon - and those who haven't paid much attention to history - may need to be reminded that it is also Oregon's birthday. Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14, 1859. And while we can all agree that our history is … Continue reading What’s happening on February 14?
How we process loss: mourning, writing, interconnecting
Writing about the people we miss hurts. And yet, it is what we do. Whether we scratch through pages only to bury those papers deep in drawers and up high on closet shelves, or burn them to ash years later. Or tirelessly hone and recraft sentences, over and over, in efforts to publish. And, if … Continue reading How we process loss: mourning, writing, interconnecting
Dede's Books and blog 