Traveling the Katy Trail and Ohio to Erie Trail by Bike A common question we are asked when recalling stories about our bike trip is: What type of roads did we encounter over our four-month voyage? “Don’t tell me you biked on major highways!” people exclaim with alarm, thinking of foolish cyclists they’ve narrowly passed … Continue reading
“Well was were you when the train left town / I was standing at the corner with my head hung down / Hey that train that carried my girl from town / Hey hey hey hey hey” –Doc Watson- “No one has written the book of life,” he reminds me as we breach conversation, sitting … Continue reading
We woke to the sight of trees overhead- lush, a ceiling of bright green. Neither Alison or I were were wearing our glasses, so all we could see was green- that fuzzy, bright, verdant color of early morning light that makes chlorophyll dance. The sun came up hesitatingly behind the trees that surround us, wrapping … Continue reading
I’ve been reading a book of poems recently entitled Owls and Other Fantasies, one of Mary Oliver’s many collections. I’ve written in the past about how Mary has inspired me and she has done it again. She balances an exhilarating mastery of language to make readers smile and weep with a healthy dose of reality … Continue reading
Take me back to the railroad track and the sounds inside my mind Where rusty wheels and steel rails still whine Where I can hop that 909 and go back in time some time ago Just let the whistle wail and take it in slow -“Train Song” by Mandolin Orange- Just a couple weeks ago, … Continue reading
We settle. We move. We root. We travel. We pack. We observe. We learn. There are so many places we may find our feet and so many paths we can take. I recall a train journey I took a year and a half ago from Tacoma to Portland. I had just graduated from Seattle University … Continue reading
Life transitions are surreal. They remind us that life is short but they also aid in compartmentalizing our lives. I have always been one to connect people and places in my life, trying to avoid stretching myself too thin and also to create community of all the people I love. At a time of transition, … Continue reading
in the midst 