The card arrived two weeks before Christmas, 1987. The handwritten message from my Mom and Dad read, “Merry Christmas Henry, Olga, Nicholas & ?” The answer to the question mark was expected on December 25. We had moved into 12 Sigmont Road on November 30 after selling the condominium, riding the wave of escalating values,Continue reading “The Power of Love”
Category Archives: The Writing Corner
Creating Beauty
The first flowers I remember giving to you happened early in our dating days. I was playing hockey on Sunday mornings in the Dorchester Men’s No Body Contact League. You even drove out to the arena on occasion to watch. Helmets did not require cages and as a result, an inadvertent stick struck me inContinue reading “Creating Beauty”
Hockey morning in Canada
Odin has been patient, waiting quietly until we rolled out of bed a little later than usual. He noses the back door, exits quickly in order to conduct his business before a yelp to open it again for re-entry. Odin swallows his breakfast; time for play. The temperature is warmer than most mornings this week,Continue reading “Hockey morning in Canada”
Blood Lines
Are you feeling well today? An easy one to begin the online eligibility questionnaire. Heck, if I wasn’t felling well, this blood donor appointment would have been rescheduled to another time. It will be the only question to which I answer “Yes” today. In the last month have you taken Toctino, Hanzema or alitretinoin? IContinue reading “Blood Lines”
Baseball and Popcorn
We were delayed in leaving for our very first trip together. Not thinking, our car was left unlocked, exposed to the shenanigans typical of weddings at the time; confetti jammed into the air vents, Vaseline smeared on the steering wheel, the door handles, the gas tank. It all had to be cleaned before we couldContinue reading “Baseball and Popcorn”
Good work if you can get it
“I am going to work. Some of us have a job, you know!” I suppose that is an excuse to rush into a left-hand turn while someone is crossing the road on a green. I had just stepped into the intersection as the walk signal began its countdown. He saw us. How could he not;Continue reading “Good work if you can get it”
Might as well be on Mars
The five of us were together again, dressed in different gear, celebrating the beginning of another journey, cherishing the memories of our previous adventure to the Yukon almost two years ago to the day. Emily is the bride in the 2024 picture, and the person responsible for the planning of our Yukon adventure. Peter isContinue reading “Might as well be on Mars”
A life of books…and books…and more books
The recent passing away of Alice Munro and the subsequent scandal reminded me of a story. I was Chair of General Education, a department responsible for teaching English and Liberal Studies to students in all programs. The diploma requirements for graduation included completion of at least one literature course, a bone of contention for many, andContinue reading “A life of books…and books…and more books”
Human
A human is human through others. The words are expressed in the aftermath of the trial where Zarko Dragic was found guilty by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for crimes against humanity in the systematic rape of women in the Bosnian War. The protagonist in Kim Echlin’s fifth novel, Speak, Silence, isContinue reading “Human”
Cold as Ice
The minus 18 temperature is not going to deter me. I have spent the last week coddling the ice, keeping the snow from accumulating, shoveling everyday, defining the contour with scrap wood, flooding the rink at dusk to take advantage of overnight cold. Grab the skates, stick and puck, pull down the toque a littleContinue reading “Cold as Ice”
Wonderings 