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Ties that Could’ve Been

Riding the train from Memphis watching the tracks go by, I was struck by the railroad ties strewn hither and thither along the way. Old ties, been there a while— it wasn’t like the tie collector was chugging along behind me ready to recover the rotting ties. I couldn’t help but think of my artist friend and the wonderful things she could make...

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The Power of a Grandmother

The little boy taps his fingers against his open palm, making the baby sign language for “more.” But it’s not nanners he wants or more pancakes. Tap, tap he goes, and says, “More choo-choo?” We spend our days—Aubrey and his Gogi—racing to the window when the choo-choo whistle blows. We crane our necks to see. The crossing arm lowers, the red...

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Time to Take a Break

When I was growing up, my daddy quit going to Rotary. Daddy had been a member of Rotary as a young businessman in Jackson, Mississippi, and when we moved to Charlotte, one of the first things he did was join the downtown Rotary Club. Tuesday nights at supper, Daddy would tell us all about what he’d learned that day from the speaker at Rotary....

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It Isn’t Fair

I wake up this morning and head out to see if the CA possibly delivered the newspaper (no) when I notice the front door is ajar. Without my husband here to lock up, I slept with my front door not just unlocked but standing open. When I go out back to scrounge up some boxes for packing, I return to find my keys dangling in the lock. So I slept...

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My Peony Life

Last night, I remembered the peonies in my dream. Startled, I wondered: had I missed their blooming? Many years ago, I dug a hole to China and planted the peony bulb in my yard – 18 inches isn’t deep until you start digging. I’d fallen in love with the flower’s ostentatiousness, its irrational exuberance, its beauty. But...

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The Deal

Nine of the fourteen stories in Cain’t Do Nothing With Love have been published in literary journals. Thus, to the extent I would be paid for their publication, I’ve already been paid. So the stories will be free. And. Each story will be paired with a charity inspired by the theme of the story. After you’ve read the story, if...

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It’s Different

“Begin with yourself,” said several of the panelists at today’s Memphis United People’s Conference on Race and Equality. They were talking about racism. “Begin with yourself and ripple out from there: to your household, your family, your neighborhood, your community.” This ls a paraphrase, but the concept was repeated many times. This is where...

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Open to All

There is a religion in New Orleans that I don’t know. In this religion the windows open outward. The joy vibrates and you are asked, “Are you Italian?” No?” Then you are told about the blessed bean. In this religion, hands wave, the food is spread and waiting. Sometimes the religion is about the saints. Sometimes it’s about the floats you worked...

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Don’t Talk—Edit

Oh my goodness—I just typed “THE END” on the Door of Hope writing group’s book! It’s not the end. But the hard part is over. The assembling of five years of handwritten pieces; the typing of those pieces by volunteer typists. The merging of all that work into a single document that can be called a manuscript. And last,...

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