Living an Unfinished Adventure
We are all living in cages with the doors wide open
I’ve been single parenting it for two weeks now. Having lived in a community with a high military population as well as North Slope—oil and gas working families, I’ve sat through many a conversation (quietly) between people temporarily single parenting. Having always had a present working partner, I merely nodded empathetically and stayed guiltily mum.... Continue Reading →
As a child (maybe 10 or 12?), I remember one of my favorite activities was going out to 'get lost' on my bike (yes, that sounded like, "Hey Mom, I'm going to get lost. I'll be back I think!"). There was a neighborhood a mile away from mine that was nicely bordered by four busier... Continue Reading →
For the past few poor snow years we’ve become wild ice chasers, listening anxiously for word-of-mouth news on lakes, sloughs, ponds and marshes that have frozen solid (enough) and are clear (enough) of snow to skate. This year though, has been a glorious snow year. Don’t get me wrong, we love the snow—winter is what... Continue Reading →
I have settled on a few, weighty conclusions this heavy year, and one is that belief is a recurring choice. As a species, a nation, a community and as a family, we have been shown just how little control we exert on the world as it has pushed us back into our humble place of... Continue Reading →
It was a cold and stormy day, but we'd committed to float the Matanuska River for an overnight trip. We got a bit of a late start and it was raining when we finally got out onto the water. Although we were bundled in warm clothes with rain gear to protect it, because we were... Continue Reading →
We could feel autumn's presence, trysting in as the sun went down and slipping out again with the coming of morning, so we planned a last camping hurrah. Meeting the train in Girdwood, we clambered ungracefully aboard, hefting the new-to-us, aging raft into the tall baggage car. I have raved of the Alaska Train, and... Continue Reading →
I kept one eye on the sea, as it sinuously stroked the rocky shores, kelp slowly fanning with each pulsating lap. Tentatively, reluctantly, the water’s liquid reach slipped further and further down the pier posts as it was dragged away from us and toward the moon’s swaggering presence. Barnacles closed up, their grasping, feathered fingers still... Continue Reading →
"Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.Alice: I don't much care where...The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.Alice: ...So long as I get somewhere.The Cheshire Cat: Oh, you're sure... Continue Reading →
January can be tough. We always have a cold snap—which is brutally beautiful, and means it takes more effort to get out with kids. School has resumed, which in our household means bickering afternoons and scheduled weeks. We always seem to have less family time even when we plan for sports that everyone can do... Continue Reading →
In October and November, it is cold, it is brown, it is dead, it is dull and we wait. We wait for the cold to overcome this tail end of fall when the leaves have blown away and the branches scrape the overcast sky. We wait for snow and ice, and hope that the ice... Continue Reading →
Living an Unfinished Adventure 