Red's Wrap
Happiness. It's relative.
Tag: family
The White Binder
My brother had our parents’ stuff laid out like a well-organized garage sale with no price tags. Relatives were picking up and putting down my mother’s costume jewelry which was arranged in rows on the basement ping pong table. I found a locket that… Continue Reading “The White Binder”
Little People Farm
I know about having a Little People Farm. I used to have one. Then all the little people grew up, thankfully, and moved away. But this post isn’t about that, it’s about the joy of toys. More specifically, the joy of toys with a… Continue Reading “Little People Farm”
Casting
If you married a man who was a fisherman, who fished not for single trout or salmon but for herds of whitefish which he then sold to stores and restaurants so tourists could enjoy an authentic Lake Superior meal, your whole life would smell… Continue Reading “Casting”
Changing the Story
The power of the narrative is incredible. If a story is told often enough, it becomes what people believe. It becomes the truth. It serves as the truth until a new truth emerges but even then most people are resistant to the revision of… Continue Reading “Changing the Story”
Slice
This is the world according to a child. A piano is where all of the stuffed animals need to line up and stay put until the weekend is over and someone else puts them back in the box. They look happy there and, oddly,… Continue Reading “Slice”
Some Things Take a Long Time to Learn
The key to being able to truly feel gratitude is to want less and accept more. I say this, of course, after already having lived a life that has been abundant with many things but knowing that it’s possible and common to have great… Continue Reading “Some Things Take a Long Time to Learn”
When Good Trips Go Bad
Nothing is worse than a road trip gone bad. Not flat-tire bad or wrong- turn bad or blown-carburetor bad. Not running-out-of-money bad or food-poisoning bad. Not crummy-motel-with-mice bad. This is all the stuff of hilarity years later, the ‘remember whens’ of family dinners and… Continue Reading “When Good Trips Go Bad”
Happy Birthday, Sis, Assuming You’re Still Alive
If you are estranged from a family member, you might not know whether he or she is still alive. This is an odd concept for many of my friends whose families vacation together, babysit each other’s kids, and celebrate every holiday together. Would anyone… Continue Reading “Happy Birthday, Sis, Assuming You’re Still Alive”
Paint It Red
I reached with my paintbrush for the tiny unpainted space between the two bedroom walls and the ceiling that the roller had missed, stretching my back and arm and holding the brush by its very tip to avoid having to step down from the… Continue Reading “Paint It Red”
Off the Hook
A few days ago, a very good friend who is also an adoptive mom sent me an article entitled “Accepting that Good Parents May Plant Bad Seeds,” published in the New York Times. The thesis of the article, written by a psychiatry professor, was… Continue Reading “Off the Hook”
Snow Door | wisconsinacademy.org
Listen to Jan read her essay “Billy” presented on WUWM’s Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “At the Breakfast Bar” on WUWM Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “The Parish Hall,” on WUWM Lake Effect
“Fury Cannot Touch Me,” Modern Love, NYT, 9/29/11
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