Dolly Parton is inspirational, particularly her focus on developing reading skills and a love of reading by providing books for young children. How can a writer not love her for that?

What I’d wanted most for my birthday was alone time with my two sons and they were taking me skydiving. Along with aging has come more angst about heights and most things that remove my feet from the ground. However, as the family matriarch, I had a reputation to maintain so I readily agreed. 

A stroke happens so suddenly and most can be prevented. Know what the signs are, how to prevent it (most can be prevented) and then go ahead and live your life fully!

View from the springs to the Suwannee My favorite kind of getaway weekend is one where electronic devices are uninvited. Leaving behind...

When I read my daily One Good Fact email from Encyclopedia Britannica, I had a sudden urge to call Mom and share it with her.  She would...

Recently my siblings, one of my nieces, and I had an adventure outside Gainesville that we’re still talking about. We visited Carson...

A friend told me I was brave for signing up for consecutive writer’s retreats in Italy and Croatia. “Why?“ I asked. “Because you don’t...

Decisions I made one morning made a big difference in my life and that of two newly hatched loggerhead sea turtles. Leah (my dog) and I...

There I was, in 90-degree heat at four o’clock in the afternoon on top of a hill with no trees nearby, barely any clouds, hundreds of...

After a very quiet and lazy Christmas holiday, I am finding it hard to get in gear. I am probably not alone. When someone wants...

Are you resistant to change? Usually, I am. When things are going well, I want them to stay that way. When my sons were little, there...

Journalist Cynthia Barnett came to our local independent bookstore, Story & Song, to discuss her new book, The Sound of the Sea. She...

You may have assumed from the title that my social life has gone up a notch. In fact, that is not the subject of this blog, but rather...

Boneyard Beach on Big Talbot Island (Jacksonville, Florida) was my last nature adventure destination of 2020 and turned out to be a...

This will be a Thanksgiving like no other. Hand sanitizer on the buffet table seems like a terrible intrusion, but these are strange...

There is no reason you can't have fun AND be safe. You don't have to go far for an adventure!

One of my favorite sayings is “You don’t have to tell ME three times.” This is because often it takes more than one error for things to...

Following a wonderful month in Italy, I'm enjoying reminiscing. Here are a few special memories of the madonnelle, people, dogs, and...

You want it to last forever. Yes I missed home, and my dog, but I spent my entire vacation writing, eating, drinking, meeting...

I recently returned from a four-week vacation and writer's retreat in Italy. While I was away, one of my dogs fell deathly ill AND the...