Photo by Anna Pelzer on Unsplash Though food is not one of the official 5 “love languages”, I consider it my love language. Food is a way that I show my affection. And it spans all 5 love language dimensions! Food elicits words of affirmation (Thank you, this is delicious). Food offers quality time and an activity together. … More Flavors by Color: Sharing my Love Language
One Sentence Journal Background: This the beginning of my tribute to a dedicated writing “practice” which brings me joy. It’s inspired by One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays from the World at Large (2018, Riverfeet Press) by Métis Storyteller & Poet Laureate of Montana, Chris La Tray. I started the day inspiration landed during a … More OSJ 11.2025
In November, my friend D said to me, “Let’s meet up again in February so you can tell me what was good through your winter. You are working so hard to find work. You must make time to relax and enjoy yourself.” Some context: D & I share a deep commitment to work, sometimes to … More Winter Wonderment
Dear Reader, What have you discovered through your senses this season? I am usually asleep by 10 PM, but it is 11 PM, and I am awash in the neon glow of my laptop screen. I notice an iron grip creeping up to ratchet my neck and shoulders as I submit my 89th job application. … More Yield to Discovery
Note: This writing practice is just that—practice. I want to get more comfortable with my voice and get into the habit of publishing rather than editing things to death or fiddling with a piece for so long that I lose the “finishing energy.” Some days, like today, with my morning coffee and journal session, a … More Source Pitch
Dear Reader, If you were sitting around a dinner table and someone asked you to tell a story and engage us with all 5 senses, what would you tell? Context: In a Speaker Nation session this month, our prompt was to” tell a 3-minute story which engaged sight, sounds, touch, taste, and smell.” I time-traveled … More The Five Senses on Sea Turtle Patrol
May: subluxed right shoulder.June: torn right gluteus mediuswith six to eight-week recovery. These are not the firstcorporeal and energeticsigns of being super bendyand overextended. It is time to replaceeffort with ease,effort with receptivity. Rest, strengthen, stabilizeOutside and inside. The body as a vehicle for learning.I am listening now. Attributions: Italicized words are quotes from A … More What is the Message?
Picture me. The old-time circus strongmanin a skintight pink and black striped leotard.Big I am, yet light on my feetin thin black, ballet slipper-like high tops. My calves, quads, glutes, lats, pecs, and biceps ripplingas I pump my armsand sprint down the railroad tracksalong the river. I left my 1000-pound barbell behind,spanning a ditchto serve … More Circus Dream [An experiment in poetry]
What words of a loved one echo in your mind often? This month marks nine years since dad left his body. I saw him in a dream recently. We were in his welding shop out behind the house. The wood stove was warming up the space. Before us was a large boat frame that he … More Welder’s Daughter
Caroline Patterson spoke and gave a workshop at the Whitefish Community Library last month. She had us start with a 10-minute warm-up prompt: Pick a color or a food and riff on that. The idea was to go into detail on something. I chose a color that opened up a flood of associations, memories, and senses … More The Green One
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