As the nation recognizes the servicemen and women who gave their lives for us, I remember my husband’s father who kept trying to enlist in WWII but got denied because he was too young. He finally got in right at the end and told stories of the ride on the “liberty ship” from the west coast to Okinawa where he served. I remember too his father, a veteran of the Mexican-American War, WWI and WWII.…
This blog originally appeared at The Roses of Prose where we’ve been exploring movie themes. To check out what my friends are writing, go here. This is a true story. I will use it in fiction some day. Until then, I couldn’t think of a better story to share for this month’s topic. It happened about 20-something years ago when I was a young mother and my sons were ages 8 and 4. My best,…
I love speed. When I drive, that is. I don’t “speed” in a legal sense, but I love getting off to a quick start and staying ahead of the pack. On an open roadway, I love taking my feisty little Hyundai into a tight, banking curve, keeping her nice and steady until she can slingshot out the other side. (And yes, my cars are all “girls.” Don’t ask me why, they just are.) My first…
I never know in advance what I’m going to write about from week to week. Usually something has to strike me on a deep, emotional level for me to care enough to want to impose my thoughts on “the world.” Some weeks the ideas jump at me from the front pages. Other weeks topics are sparked by a casual conversation. And some weeks, my idea bank is empty and I have to go trolling for…
I think I know how Eliza Doolittle felt on that fateful day when Professor ‘Enry ‘Iggins finally taught her how to vocalize her H’s! It’s that thrill of discovery, that shock of pleasure over a found 5-dollar bill. It comes unexpectedly, often when least expected—that sensation of sheer joy and rightness with the moment. Or maybe it’s more of a relief for me, relief that finally I’m starting to feel some of the Spirit of…
As I write this, it’s a couple hours into “Cyber Monday,” the great on-line shop-a-looza that follows Black Friday and (something new this year!) Black Saturday…you know, your last chance to shave a few bucks off the perfect gifts for your loved ones, office mates, classmates and teachers…whomever among your circle of acquaintances needs “gifting”…until the next last chance to save money on the perfect gifts for the holidays. Yes, THE HOLIDAYS are officially here,…
I once worked for a very wealthy couple who owned and operated their own business. They lived in a mansion in one of the nicest parts of town, both drove big luxury cars, and sent their kids to the best schools in the country. And when their kids graduated college, they either gave them jobs in their firm or purchased them their own companies. (Seriously. And that’s outside of graduation gifts!) At the time I…
New Jersey gets a bad rap. I know that because I spent most of my growing and adult years in the state named for its gardens but known for its highways. It’s the state where I raised my children, the state where I learned to drive, learned to cook (well, sort of), and learned the love of writing. So it’s fitting, to me, that it’s the state where I was reminded, this past weekend, of…
As chaos overtakes Wall Street and cities around the country, and people rail in the streets against “the machine” in all its forms (corporate, financial, governmental), we in the St. James household have tried to maintain a sense of balance. We’ve tried to look at both sides, tried to understand each side’s perspective, and I think we’ve been successful. (As a writer, I need to be able to see both sides of a story after…
If you were like me and millions of other Americans, you spent yesterday, the tenth anniversary of the terror attacks on the U.S., remembering the innocents who lost their lives to an evil that was, before that day, unimaginable to most of us. If you were like me, you stopped to remember the brave police, firefighters and “everyday” Americans who gave their lives to save others. If you were like me, you stopped to remember…