My mother loved to garden. She had a green thumb and grew a variety of flowers. Among her prized flowers were roses, irises, and peonies. Her love of peonies was surprising, given how much she disliked ants. Remember, she claimed, with great disgust, where there's one ant, there's a legion [...]
Costa Rica is pure magic. The weather is perfect. Not too hot, pleasantly warm. There is a breeze in the evening that is welcome and calls for a light scarf. The retreat setting is perfect. Everyone in my group is relaxed and happy. We are in a tropical paradise. [...]
In exchange for leafless trees, long nights, ice covered roads, and cold, rainy, short days, winter's barter surprises us with unexpected flair! Below you have the best of my winter photos from this season. I feel each photo represents a gem gained in Winter's Barter. A few weeks ago, Bev [...]
One hundred years ago, on December 27, 1921, a baby boy was born to Onofria Terrana and Giovanni Brunogallo, in their tiny stone house on Via Chiasso Cavallo, Number 27, in Grotte, Sicily. This baby would grow up to be my papa, my dad, my foundation. Though born on December [...]
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I hope this finds you well and enjoying this festive holiday season. Below you will find my musings on my childhood Christmases and a Season's Greeting for this year. My childhood Christmases were fun. One of the most special aspects of Christmas was that my [...]
