Oh, little bird, why did you visit — to entertain, to prick, to haunt, to teach? To hear each spring the birds announce the return of familiar flowers, longer sunlit days, and a cast of budding greens, awakens my senses to pay attention. That a wren announces this intensity of life is no wonder. Compared … Continue reading Oh, Little Bird, Why Did You Visit?
The steers were agitated, squaring off and shoving each other while butting their heads and stamping in circles. The ruckus was an all out longhorn brawl. With our eyes wide and our mouths open, Jimmy and I perched on top of the dam — somehow believing twenty sloped feet between us and the fighting longhorns … Continue reading Meet Sweet Ferdinand: All 102″ TTT
"The afternoon knows what the morning never suspected." — Robert Frost Like an alarm bell, the sprouting sedums announce the passage of time. Could it be more than a year since the first post on Take Comfort? I had three reasons to start this blog: To share stories with my kids; to challenge myself … Continue reading Take Comfort: A Year Flew Softly By
"Listen, God has made you free in a tomb that is empty." (Robert Troutman, my dad, sermon from 1981). Excerpt from the sermon, "An Easter for all Seasons." "This freedom can be in any kind of society or structure. It can be in any country in the world. ...This freedom can come at any place, … Continue reading Your Easter Basket
“Get out you damn fool,” she shouted. To her caregivers, Eleanor’s words were too easy to ignore, just another refusal from a memory care resident not wanting to be changed at the prescribed time. Her fingernails dug into their skin. “Stop it you damn shit.” Without pause, they pulled my mom into the restroom, her … Continue reading Noooo! Mom Did Not Say That!
The snow is expected, but the sand is not. In the recent post — That was Unexpected! — I shared how snow along the edges of an agave, a sight recently but rarely seen in South Texas, reminded me of snow along the edges of sand seen on a recent trip to Colorado. This post … Continue reading Remarkably Unexpected
Awake, awake, enlarge through the littlest of all. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the Lost Madrone Ranch Karen
