Learning to Breathe - Hickory Hill
https://books.apple.com/us/book/hickory-hill/id1510568720


Breakfast in my Backyard
I awoke to the melody of a Cardinal calling. In my semi-awake, semi-asleep state, I could picture the beautiful red bird atop the dogwood tree in my front yard. I could see him raising his body as he sang, contrasting against the pure blue above, inhaling air and producing music like that of a skilled musician. Singing in many directions - to the north, to the south, to the east and west. Like reverie at boot camp, it was time to get up. Like the Cardinal, I have my morning r


Behind the Eyes of Joe
When I see wild places developed this is what goes through my mind: Behind the Eyes of Joe On a day like any other, a beautiful baby was born. He came into the world without hate, sorrow or scorn. His eyes were so brown and his gaze full of hope, his skin was so soft and his hair curled like rope.
His mother named him Joe after a brother that had died. Joe would be his name which he’d carry with pride. Joe grew up with everything a baby boy could want. But the land outside h


The Season of Color
It is the season of color. Like the last hurrah of a fireworks display when all the stops are pulled and the crowd watches with faces a-gasp. During this time of year, it seems like the blue tones in the sky are just so much more beautiful. It's a special blue. A childhood blue. The color of a toy box or an animal figure floating above the cradle on a mobile as it turns slowly above a baby's head. To me, it brings great comfort and peace. Maybe, in some way, this color remind


The Old Tree and I
How many remember climbing a tree when they were little? Do you remember how much you loved that old tree? How that silent giant allowed you to be taller than the tallest adult and gave you freedom from the earth? Do you remember hiding behind it in a game of hide and go seek? Or finding an Easter egg tucked in one of the many cracks and crevices at it's base? As a child I remember climbing up in one particular old tree in our backyard. It was an oak and had many long, almost