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HEALTH JOURNEY ON A ROUGH ROAD

A ‘health journey’ is a phrase used by people with lots of doctor appointments. If you’re old enough you either take that rough road yourself, or you show up for others on it. Personally, I’ve never liked the term. I like it even less when it applies to young people coming down with old people […]

REWRITING HISTORY: HOW HARD CAN IT BE

People are rewriting history all of the time and don’t know it. If you repeat what you’ve heard to one person, and it turns out to be not accurate, what’s the big deal? Not so big for one person, but what if you repeat what you know to be false to millions of people? Do […]

RIPPLE EFFECT OUT OF NOWHERE

You’ve seen the ripple effect if you’ve ever tossed a stone into calm water. The rock goes “PlooP’ and sends little waves across the water’s surface. Small waves for us are huge to the little creatures on the shoreline. What happens when we are the small creatures?

HOMEWARD BOUND? YES WE ARE

Homeward bound is the goal of all travelers. First it’s all about getting out and around, seeing new places and new people. Then it happens. Whether a face, a building, or something you eat, you’re ready to turn the corner and head for home. That’s the story, but . . .

THE RIGHT ONE. WHERE DO THEY HIDE?

Men and women share at least one thing in common: They all want to find The Right One. Who to be with, where to live, what kind of job? The easy answers are, the right one, the right place, and right work. The hard part is deciding the order. Start with The Right One.

LEAVING TOWN? GOING HOME? NOT EXACTLY

Leaving town is one thing. It’s different for everyone. How different? Some never come back. But we all carry parts of town, growing up in a place, with us. Nothing shows it more than a high school reunion on the long side.

AMERICAN STORIES: MOVING ON TO NEW LAND

American stories in early Oregon were about pioneers, travel, and hard work. How hard? As hard as it’s ever been clearing land by hand. But first they had to get here. And they’re still coming.

DIALECT STORIES TOLD IN TONGUES

Based on a particular vocabulary, all stories are dialect stories. From Mark Twain to Forrest Gump, and every stop in between. But what happens when language jumps off the page with directions, or recipes, or, wait for it: Feelings?

LIFE STORIES: WHEN PERSONAL HISTORY IS NOT ENOUGH

Life stories come in every form and flavor from hot to cold, bland to sassy, truthful to made up. Tell the same stories long enough to the same people and they start to wonder: “How many times have we heard this stuff?” “Do they know they’ve told the same story over and over?” If you’ve […]

FAMILY PLAN? FARM THE KIDS OUT FOR PEACE AND QUIET

For most, a family plan is making sure the kids are alright. Planned pregnancies and Tiger Mom tactics? What’s that? My parents had four kids and we always lived across from a sand dune and a forest. Smart move. When they said go out and play, we knew where to go. Forest play was more […]