She was born Lydia Head in South Carolina in 1824 and married James Barker in 1847. Lydia and James worked on their farm in Georgia. Life must have been hard but good for Lydia until something happened to change it all. The Barker family was about to go to church. James was sitting in the […]
Jan 25, 2023
Silence
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SILENCE A soft and downy, drowsy day; The sky is furry, blurry gray, No wind to blow the snow away In patches. The trees are draped in frozen lace; The meadow is an arctic place, And house and barn, with wintry grace, Wear thatches. –Blanche
Jan 23, 2023
A Winter Night
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Backyard bushes, robbed of summer’s greenery, stand bare and gray in the winter night. The birds don’t mind. When moonlight silvers the yard, they crowd deep into the thick twigs, twittering and chirping, content to be hidden by darkness and their stubbly cover. A few wild forest creatures slip into the yard. A raccoon, a […]
Jan 22, 2023
The Gift of Life
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This is Sanctity of Life Sunday. It is a day to commemorate the sacredness of human life and call attention to the many lives lost due to abortion. It was begun by President Ronald Reagan in 1984. I am unashamedly pro-life. I believe I’ve heard all the arguments from pro-choice people. I don’t wish to […]
Jan 20, 2023
Catalpa
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One night in Oklahoma, several years ago a strong wind came through. Oklahoma’s winds are not to be trifled with and this one was no exception. It wasn’t a twisting, swirling wind of a tornado, but a straight, hard one that blew over a huge catalpa tree that had stood in my parents’ back yard […]
Jan 19, 2023
The Way It Was
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The following story is from my mother’s book, Remembering Etta Bend. These are the words of Susie Latty, who, much later, became my mom. The year would have been around 1918. Most of the things we used were homemade and they had to last as long as possible. Papa carved his own handles and wood […]
