Thirty-one years ago I moved across the county to hang with a long-time (fifteen year) friend who had just moved back to the U.S. to take a tenure track position after his post-doc. My social circle primarily developed through a couple, Debbie and Steve, who loved to entertain, and were connected to my husband’s campus […]
Remembering 1.8.2011
January 8th is one of those dates. One of those terrible and increasingly common dates. A young white man with access to a gun and who should not have had access to one, attempted to assassinate Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was my Congresswoman at that time. Giffords was holding a “Congress on your corner” event […]
Grounding Grief as Memory
Memory changes its character once death claims a person or people with whom a memory was shared. Grieving individuals or families tell stories about the deceased to solidify and reinforce a narrative of the dying or dead person. As someone is dying, or after someone in the family dies, a consensually created memory emerges. Sometimes […]
The Last Blossom on My Branch
With my love of family stories, personal history, and personal material culture it is ironic that I see my Family Tree pruning itself into oblivion. My daughter is the last women of my maternal line. She is so much like me in many ways. I always said until I was in my early 30s that […]