Field musicians were an integral part of both the Union and the Confederate armies during the Civil War. The drums provided the soldiers with a steady beat when they were marching. The instruments were designed to be loud and to be heard from a great distance. In fact, they could be heard from as far […]

Note:  This month, I am doing a blogging challenge called “NaBloPoMo.” Well, that’s not going to trip off of the tongue because I’m not sure that I can pronounce it. But, anyway, I am doing it. The main requirement is to write a new blog post every day. To facilitate the daily blogging, the organizers

Today’s topic is “If you could be completely honest with no regrets, what would you say and to whom?” I would talk to owners of restaurants, people who run outdoor festivals, and people who drive cars that I can hear from my house. I would say that it really isn’t necessary to blast your music

“Facing your fears robs them of their power” — Rob Burnett Bravery: courageous behavior or character In 2011, when I was a volunteer at an organic reforestation project in El Limonel,Ecuador, I was weeding around trees when I was faced with an object of extreme terror. It was an army of fire ants, climbing up

It is the first of November. The sun rises later and sets earlier. The colorful leaves are falling from the trees, and, in the process, are turning brown and brittle. My part of the world is preparing itself for winter, a time of dormancy and of shadows. The time of vivid colors is nearly over.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! To celebrate all of these things that go bump in the night, I am sharing a creative writing exercise with you. It will be a basic premise for a horror story. And, because this year’s presidential election has been quite horrifying, the main characters in this year’s horror story will be Donald Trump

Today, at Saint Martin in the Fields Episcopal Church in Grand Island, New York, Father Earle King talked about Zaccheus, who climbed a sycamore tree so that he could see Jesus. Zaccheus was a short man so he needed to get the advantage of a little extra height. Being “fun sized” myself, I understand this

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to share their opinions and stories and ideas on my blog posts. You, and everyone who reads this blog, are very much appreciated. Today, I’m going to share and answer some of the comments.  The “bed and breakfast” post drew these comments: From Jane: I’m coming to

Today’s blogging challenge is to answer the question: What advice would you give your teenaged self… if you could go back in time and share that advice. So… what advice would I give Alice when she was a teenager?   I think that I will write her a letter, with a few suggestions from an

Today’s blogging challenge is about travel. The question was “where would you like to travel? What is on your bucket list?” Well, I have been fortunate enough to be able to walk long distances and to join groups of people who walk for causes. In June, I walked through rural Illinois with a group. The