America

The Wild Tree

It was 2002. Our family had an obvious aversion to buying Christmas trees. It was almost like a repulsion to spending money on something we would throw away within the month. And it was almost like there weren’t artificial trees accessible for a small fee that we could keep for 15 to 20 years. MyContinue reading “The Wild Tree”

The Treasure Hunters

A few years ago, we bought a used chair, the wooden kind with worn-out tie-on burgundy cushions. It’s more of a glider than a rocker. It came with a burgundy cushioned footstool that glided, too. A while back, my heavyset self broke it. What is it with me and the chairs recently? One of theContinue reading “The Treasure Hunters”

Making the Bed

I wouldn’t consider myself a failure, but I do fail. I think the key is always to get back up and keep moving forward. Take the other day, for example. My wife had washed the bed sheets, and they were in the dryer. I wanted to do something to help her out because of allContinue reading “Making the Bed”

The Black Walnut Brigade

Autumn. It’s the time of year when the black walnut trees start to drop their fruit onto the ground. Some people pick them up and sell them to the local hulling station. Others just let them rot on the ground. We had at least ten black walnut trees around our house growing up. My parentsContinue reading “The Black Walnut Brigade”

The Day We Remember

If you don’t remember what you were doing that morning when you heard the news, you were probably still developing eyelids or were just a gleam in your daddy’s eye. 2001 was our first year of homeschooling. It was 7:30 a.m., and our neighbor was grading his driveway. Somehow, he tipped his tractor over onContinue reading “The Day We Remember”