Month: August 2022

 During Cousin Camp, when our youngest grandchildren visited us for a week, I encountered examples of xenophobia in news stories, a biography of Rogers Williams and an educational trip we took. Xenophobia – the fear of strangers (or even people who practice unfamiliar lifestyles) is everywhere. For many weeks, my breakfast time has included reading…

 Laughing, giggling, teasing children and teenagers swept through the house once my daughter’s four children joined their trio of cousins. “I knew it would be loud,” I said to my daughter. “It is.” Supper waited while the cousins joined forces to check out the house and each other. We live too far away for any…

Shortly before World War II, when my dad and his twin brother were not yet 10 years old, their dad (Grandpa Hibbard) announced, “We need to build a bigger barn with more stanchions for the milk cows. If we build near that spring it will flow into a cooler with the milk cans. We will…

“No sickness is allowed,” I told the family. Usually everyone obeys. Exceptions do occur. I anticipated pain and misery the week my octogenarian husband had a couple teeth pulled. On surgery day, we left early to compensate for road repairs and school buses. We encountered neither. We arrived almost an hour early. The staff processed…