One spring day, Eostre, the ancient, Teutonic goddess of fertility, was walking through the forest when she came upon an injured swallow. The world had not yet thawed, and the poor creature’s wings were frozen. Eostre took pity upon the suffering bird, petting it gently and blowing upon its frozen feathers. Her breath transformed the […]
My parents have a small organic garden. It’s near – but not near enough – to the house to have access to water pipes. So they catch rain and carry that water from the rain catcher to their beloved tomato plants in big buckets. One of the buckets has a small crack in it, water […]
Aztec lore tells that the Feathered Serpent God Quetzalcoatl created the cosmos, then the sun, and then creatures of all sorts. But this Toltec God was lonely and wanted to populate the world. So he snuck into the Underworld to steal the bones that were guarded there. The Lord and Lady of Death agreed to […]
“The sun gave forth its light without brightness, like the moon, during this whole year … men were free neither from war nor pestilence nor any other thing leading to death.” ~Byzantine historian Procopius, AD 500-570 2020 was the worst year ever. It’s a familiar – and understandable – refrain. 2020 was indeed a […]
“Soup puts the heart at ease, calms down the violence of hunger, eliminates the tension of the day, and awakens and refines the appetite.” ~Auguste Escoffier Kentucky is fairly monochromatic in February. Look out any window and you’re apt to see only shades of white, brown, and gray, snow and mud and lifeless, leafless trees. […]
When I was young, my best friend attended St. Agatha, the local Catholic school. One spring, I remember seeing her after school with smudges on her forehead, as if she had been cleaning out the fireplace. When I leaned in to wipe her face, she jumped back in alarm, clapping her hand over her head. […]
