Red's Wrap
Happiness. It's relative.
Tag: NaBloPoMo
That It was the Same Only Better
I thought God had circled the Earth twenty times until He saw me wringing my hands after another failed home pregnancy test and decided to bring me babies from somewhere else. That’s how far gone I was. I absolutely believed that I was purposely… Continue Reading “That It was the Same Only Better”
The Week That Was
Let’s see. I wrapped up a project this week that involved working with a person who was the ‘other woman’ in a volatile relationship I had thirty-five years ago. I knew about her and she knew about me but I don’t know if she… Continue Reading “The Week That Was”
What Comes Next: Plant a New Tree
After the City cut down our very old and very beautiful Norway Maple, the arborist brought us a list of trees from which to choose a replacement. There were a dozen trees on the list. “Look them up on the internet,” she told us.… Continue Reading “What Comes Next: Plant a New Tree”
Lady Godiva
The landlord gave me thirty days. The letter came out of the blue. In the mail. An official letter with a return receipt attached that I had to sign so the mailman could tell the sender that I’d gotten the letter, held it in… Continue Reading “Lady Godiva”
A Person in the World
I’m in a stage of my life where I am wanting mothering to have been one of the things I’ve done but not the only thing or even, maybe, the most important thing. Part of my wanting to get out from under the mothering… Continue Reading “A Person in the World”
If This, Then That: Reflections on Adoption
The theology of adoption has a thick ribbon of rescue running through it. To rescue a child in dire straits is heroic. No doubt about it, children who are available for adoption, those beautiful little faces you see on the adoption web pages and… Continue Reading “If This, Then That: Reflections on Adoption”
We Made It!
I could’ve quit but I didn’t. It’s not like it was such a big deal. I didn’t paddle a kayak across the Atlantic Ocean or ride my bike from Jersey to L.A. I didn’t climb Mt. Everest or swim from Cuba to Key West.… Continue Reading “We Made It!”
Waiting for the Brass Band
There’s a brass band way down the street. Part of me is excited for its arrival on my doorstep and part of me wants to lock the door and draw the shades. It’s been very quiet in my head for the past ten days.… Continue Reading “Waiting for the Brass Band”
Smile Everlasting
Today is my father’s birthday. He was born November 25, 1913. Incredibly, I didn’t know that until he died and I read the date on the card the funeral director handed me when I walked in to my father’s service in 2003. He died… Continue Reading “Smile Everlasting”
Still Ready for the Round Up
We ride trucks. We spit on the ground. We wear old black Levis. We drink coffee black. We break our own hearts. We smoke what there is. We don’t want any mail. We go where we are. We live when we want.
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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