. . . We can sit still, keep silent, let the phoebe, the sycamore, the river, the stone call themselves by whatever they call themselves, their own sounds, their own silence, and thus may know for a moment the nearness of the world, its vastness . . . –Wendell Berry, from his poem “Words” […]
Last week a friend phoned and asked, “Do you have any time left?” At least, that’s how I heard it at first. And thought–Gee, I hope so. Then I chuckled to myself when I realized what she actually said and meant was, “Do you have any thyme left?” Her own patch had faded, and, a […]
The smell of Dove soap can evoke memories of my maternal grandmother, even though she died fifty years ago when I was in first grade. When I see a red rose bush, I think of her garden, and the taste of rainbow sherbet reminds me of her gentle kindness. Two of her former possessions grace […]
In legend, returning from the mountaintop can be a letdown, but, for me, settling back into home in these Texas hills after traveling in the mountains of Colorado feels comfortable, like replacing regular street shoes with cuddly slippers. There are just as many wonders close to home as there are far afield. One of my […]
A century ago, John Muir asserted that “going to the mountain is going home” and that “wildness is necessity” for “tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people.” And doesn’t that last phrase describe us all even more now than then? When I was growing up in the Texas hill country, the words most often repeated at graveside funeral […]
Poking around Routt County, Colorado (shown above) last week, my husband and I ran across this chalked message on the sidewalk of the beautiful public trail along the Yampa River: It reads, “What if the hokey pokey really is what it’s all about?” When I read it, I laughed aloud. And maybe that is an important […]
A recently widowed friend says that without her husband of almost fifty years, even little things have changed. A few weeks after her husband’s death, strong storm winds rattled the roof during the night, and she felt helpless and a bit frightened in the darkness. But she has found that allowing herself to feel her feelings […]
Even in the heat of August and in the midst of drought, a walk along the diminishing creek shares secret glories. This week, here in the Texas hill country, I saw ordinary little miracles. A green kingfisher winged above the creek at my eye-level as I stood on the bank. Turkey gobblers lolled in the […]
Last week, my doubles partner in pickleball, a man I did not know, turned to me after a rousing rally and grinned, saying with good-humored sarcasm, “So–you’re not competitive, are you?” Me? Competitive? It’s been a central theme and conflict for me since second grade when I ran full speed into a tetherball pole while […]
Something unexpected happens when these two seemingly very similar butterflies, shown above sharing a coneflower in my Texas hill country garden, open their wings. When it unfolds, the one on the left in the photo above reveals through its stained-glass pattern that it is a monarch: The one pictured on the right in the photo […]
Studies in Color and Composition
Radical Retirement
A Glimpse into My Life & Passions
Joann Pensabene
Where observation and imagination meet nature in poetry.
pursuing a life of purpose
Writing our way to awareness
Living life outside the lines
A Story Circle Network blog for and by women
A Diary of Love, Literature, and Growing Up in Wartime America
Practicing Wonder 