Editor’s Note: This is the edition we must have had 1965-1966. I put it to novel use as you’ll see in this story. You’ll also see how humor saves many a day. *** I recently read in the New York Times that Arthur Frommer has died (November 18, 2024). I have a story to tell…
Category: Memoirs
Aging as a Spiritual Practice
Editor’s Note: This small artwork, only 8″ x 8″, is an original oil painting by Arizona artist Bev Johnson. I call it “Grandmother”. I talk to this old woman who represents to me the joys and sorrows of aging, especially for women — happier days sitting in a circle weaving her clothes with women friends;…
Metta, the Buddhist Nun
The last time we lived in Sedona, Arizona, there was a Buddhist nun living in our neighborhood. We were to learn her name was Metta, the Sanskrit word for lovingkindness. Buddhism teaches that metta is not just an emotion, but rather a cultivated mental state in which our attention and concern are directed toward the…
Living Life with the Horse Gene
Author/Editor Note: This painting “Ride Like the Wind” by Debbie Criswell is a wonderful metaphor for my sister. In writing my memoir for my Storyworth book project, I ended up telling her story. As often happens with memoirists, we become biographers. My sister, Susan Reinke, was born with the horse gene. Those of you who…
Living Aboard Our First Sailboat: Gone Away
It all started with sailing magazines that arrived in our mailbox. Seems innocuous enough, doesn’t it? But we weren’t living near a body of water, large or small; no, we were living in Sedona, the Red Rock country of Arizona. What was going on? Well, what was going on was husband Ken Normington was planting…
A Vacation During a National Tragedy
This is our 9/11 story. In early September of 1991 Ken and I were living on our sailboat in Key West, Florida, again selling timeshare for Hyatt Vacation Club. Usually we were on Cape Cod this time of year, or maybe Virginia Beach on the Chesapeake Bay, but not this year. On Tuesday, September…