I hadn't seen Paula in six years. How did we go that long after years of spending so much time together? She and her husband, David had been my friends since I met them at Evergreen Church when my sons were in high school. They helped with the youth group and David was also one … Continue reading Hike Over Bluff Mountain: Friendship Continued
The Camino is Calling
This past week was my third of training for the journey I want to take next June. I was talking with my younger son, Ross and described my travel plan. I told him I'd written a blog post and referred to taking a journey with more walking than I've ever done. Then I confessed, "I'm … Continue reading The Camino is Calling
Window of Opportunity
A window of opportunity can be open just enough to let you through; you don't know how long it'll remain that way. When I was young, I thought that windows, like everything else around me, remained the same over time. I couldn't see how dynamic life is, people and situations changing-- at times drastically, at … Continue reading Window of Opportunity
Training for Pilgrimage: Getting Started
In last week's post, I introduced my idea for going on an upcoming pilgrimage-- a journey that would involve a lot of hiking. I ended with the plan to develop a training program to follow over the next few months to see if it's a reasonable goal for me--for the level of fitness I can … Continue reading Training for Pilgrimage: Getting Started
Planning for Pilgrimage: Can I Do It?
Last week I talked with my friend, Judy about her recent trip with the Road Scholars to South Dakota. She's gone on multiple treks with that group that offers educational and recreationally challenging experiences for those over the age of 50. The last trip Judy had taken was right before the lockdown from Covid in … Continue reading Planning for Pilgrimage: Can I Do It?
Late Bloomers
I've been to two 50th High School Reunions in the past month: mine and John's, my boyfriend. Before each, I've looked at the annuals for our senior year. There were so many similarities in that any page of class pictures looked very much alike because we shared common hair and clothing styles in 1973. Like … Continue reading Late Bloomers
Season of Harvest
It's the beginning of Harvest Season-- that period between mid-September and the end of November that's the time for bringing in the bounty. Growing up on a farm, I was aware of the seasons of planting and harvesting, of fallow fields of winter and fresh green shoots of spring. Hearing farmers talk about their crops, … Continue reading Season of Harvest
Special Times: A Grandmother’s Tale
This week I had a new experience with my grandsons: keeping them for an extended time while their parents were visiting friends in Seattle. I kept Baker, who is now 5, and Parks, who is 3, for two days a week for over three years. So, I'm familiar with their routines from all those hours … Continue reading Special Times: A Grandmother’s Tale
An Irish Path
One year ago today, I was flying with my cousin, Kim from Edinburgh, Scotland to Dublin, Ireland. We'd just completed a six-day Rabbie's bus tour into the Outer Hebrides on the west coast of Scotland. There, on the wondrous Isle of Skye, Kim had scattered her mother's ashes--her final request, to honor her mother's McDonald … Continue reading An Irish Path
Our High School Reunion
Today I'm reliving memories of last night's high school reunion. It was four hours of switching from past to present, reconciling the frozen-in-time memories of some classmates with the person who was in front of me. There's always a big build up before events like this-- at least I think it's that way for most … Continue reading Our High School Reunion
Connie Rosser Riddle 