Columns
Lifetime of experiences leads to book
Have you ever given much thought to writing a book? My wife is the only one who has ever suggested it, bless her heart. There’s no book deal on my horizon, for obvious and truthful reasons. Imagine the time required, dedication and discipline to produce a book....
Wayfaring gardeners
“For our Founding Fathers, gardening, agriculture, and botany were elemental passions, as deeply ingrained in their characters as their belief in liberty for the nation they were creating. From Founding Gardeners: the Revolutionary Generation, Nature, and the Shaping...
Thoughts on the “nuclear” family
I can report that my parents are still doing well, despite the virus that’s threatening us all. For the past few years my parents have lived here by themselves, retired and advancing into their senior years but otherwise happy and active. But now their oldest son has...
No more drive-by birthdays!
Beaudry turned two years old this past week. He’s my youngest grandson. In these difficult times birthday parties can’t be celebrated in the traditional manner. We understand it, Beaudry did not. Beaudry is a loveable, cute, smart little boy, although a handful for...
Living through the Coronavirus: Part 2
Editor’s note: This is the second in a two-part series. The first part appeared in the April 8 edition of the Tri-City Times. Columnist Paula Parisot is sharing the experiences of her relative, Morgan Gallup Zhu, who resides with her husband and daughter in Nanjing,...
Learning the meaning of things
A girl learning to read cursive, I discovered a piece of paper on the kitchen counter one day. Mom’s pretty handwriting listed words like flour, baking soda, tea bags–things she used in the kitchen. Then, in the middle of the list she wrote TP. What was that? I heard...
Living through the Coronavirus in China
Editor’s note: This is the first part in a two-part series. Look for the conclusion in the April 15 edition of the Tri-City Times. “An American in China” is a blog written by my second cousin’s daughter, Morgan Gallup Zhu. The blog details her journey through the...
Stories of faith and tradition
Comic relief Youtubes and email about the present plague fill my mailbox. The “mask controversy” leads. But that will change. Zoom and Skype keep folk connected and business rolling forward best they can. My heartfelt thanks to the farmer and hunter who feed us, and...
Spring peepers, silver linings
I cried inconsolably when my father uprooted us from our Kentucky farm to Detroit in 1954. To soothe my homesickness, Mom taught my two sisters and me how to make hollyhock ballerinas with toothpicks. She bought us ice cream at Brown’s Creamery. I loved spinning on...
Birdsong and a prayer
A harbinger of spring, we tackled the asparagus patch this week. Mel pulled dried weeds and pushed loads of compost uphill. With shovel in hand, I assessed my half of the labor. Yes, our food is worth the work. Fastidious about my gardens’ borders, I began with a...
