Wandering through an antique shop, I found a copy of a Woman’s World magazine, December 1918. How times have changed in a hundred years! The magazine reflected the country’s need for being frugal and saving. There were tips for sewing and cooking and advertisements for home remedies. Particularly interesting were the ads for medicines […]
Nov 11, 2025
Armistice Day!
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It was a different kind of world in 1918. Woodrow Wilson was our 28th President. Postage stamps were two cents, a loaf of bread cost a dime and a gallon of gasoline was eight cents. An epidemic of Spanish flu ravaged the country, causing more than 500,000 deaths. Some of the popular songs were Over […]
Sep 15, 2025
Through Other Eyes
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My sister-in-law and I found these old glasses, still in their case, when we were cleaning out my parents’ storage room. I know two things about them: they are old and I don’t know who they once belonged to. They did not belong to my parents and I’m guessing some previous owner of the house […]
Sep 2, 2025
One September Morning
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This is a beautiful, chilly September morning–blue skies, calm breeze. A small wren lights among the grape vine on my front porch. I don’t think that vine will ever have grapes and I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s the ground or maybe it would prefer more room. Anyway, the wren finds something to eat among […]
Aug 13, 2025
You’ve Got Mail
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In the early 1900s, the people of the Etta community seldom received mail. The nearest post office was in Tahlequah, more than 15 miles away by horse or wagon over rough country roads. A traveler to Tahlequah must ford the Illinois River twice and Barron Fork Creek once. No bridges arched these streams and some […]
Aug 3, 2025
Dukes and Duchesses
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John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough defeated the French and Bavarians on August 2, 1704. Who knew? And, today, who cares? But, if you were the Duke or his British soldiers at that time, you cared a lot! If any one individual was ever the inspirations for stories of intrigue, mystery, action, or romance, it […]
