In the weeks leading up to the Solstice, the world has felt to me like a ball tossed in the air, hovering just for a moment before it falls back down. Something about these long days, when the sun wakes me before my alarm and the kids keep playing outside on their bikes when they … More A Solstice Pause
A few years ago, in an encouraging rejection letter, an editor said my piece was “post-card writing,” describing a particular time and place in a way that is accessible to the reader. It was something that they used to publish quite a lot of, but now rarely do. When I read his description, I thought, … More A Spring Postcard
I witnessed the first sheep feed of the year last week, when, after dropping the kids off from school, I crested the hill just above our house I saw Kem’s truck out in the pasture, surrounded by a knot of hungry sheep. As he began to drive the truck in a slow circle, dropping cake … More Winter Feeding
Every year, on a long weekend in the miserable belly of winter, our family escapes to Thermopolis, Wyoming, home to the world’s largest mineral hot springs. There’s nothing quite like running out the door into a 15-degree winter morning, knocking ice off the railings as you ease your way into a steaming pool. When the … More Smoking Waters
Here, in Central Wyoming, we have had an absolutely beautiful fall, with trees around town crowned in eye-watering yellows, oranges and reds. Most years, we have a freeze and at least one snow by October, which turns the leaves to a soggy brown, and our constant winds send them to Nebraska, but, thanks to our … More Fall Colors
Vegetarian Ranchwife 