Donald C. Minor to his daughter, Marilyn--1954 This letter written from my Grandaddy Minor to my mother, Marilyn, made me chuckle. Though decades old, its mixed sentiments about the holiday season could have been written in just the last few days. As 1954 drew to a close, Donald Minor paused before heading to bed to … Continue reading Letters from Home:
Christmas
Peeking Into Ira’s Soul
""Practice any art," Kurt Vonnegut wrote. "...music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage..."Practice any art...no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame, but to experience becoming, to find out what's inside you, to make your soul grow." Ira Sayles, 1817-1894, practiced art, writing essays and poems throughout … Continue reading Peeking Into Ira’s Soul
And You Thought OUR Roads Were Bad: 1918 Christmas Roadtrip
Chasing family tales is what gets all genealogists hooked, and when we get help from previously unknown circles, it feels like Christmas. To receive such collaboration AT Christmastime is just too wonderful for words. I want to thank cousin, Linda Bell, for her holiday energy and sharing. Family lore has become another GREAT family story. … Continue reading And You Thought OUR Roads Were Bad: 1918 Christmas Roadtrip
(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Christmas Cards 1910
My grandfather's postcard collection dates from 1906-1910, a wonderful glimpse into the life of small, turn-of-the-century boy. But Donald C. Minor's cards also offer the simple pleasure of Christmas artwork, which I never tire of admiring. Two red-breasted songsters perch on a sprig of holly, which is decorated with a sprig of mistletoe and a … Continue reading (Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Christmas Cards 1910
Seasonal Marker
I open the door to release restless pups, and they gallop into the yard, dawn breaking overhead. I open the refrigerator to grab peppers, onions, garlic, and ginger, with the gorgeous low-on-the-horizon beams flooding my kitchen. I pick out dropped leaves which lie among my flame red poinsettias, no matter how carefully I attend their … Continue reading Seasonal Marker
Shoots, Roots, and Leaves 