One Fine Morning...

One of my favorite topics of study during my ten year stint as a public high school teacher was Transcendentalism. Explaining Transcendentalism in a sentence or two isn't easy; nevertheless--and at the risk of boring you to tears--here I go: Transcendentalism is a philosophy loosely tied together by some general beliefs regarding God, nature and intuition. Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau get most of the credit for articulating the Transcendentalist philosophy back in the 1830s in New England. Thoreau was more radical than Emerson and even spent two years living in a small cabin on Walden Pond in Massachusetts (the very pond that Amy falls into while ice skating in Little Women . Who doesn't love a good literary connection?). Whew. Are you still with me? I loved chatting with my students about Transcendental philosphy. I liked spending days discussing the merits and disadvantages of Civil Disobedience and loved it even more when kids talked animatedly about st...

If you should ever come to visit, I suggest a day trip With Trent, Liz, and Lillian as your tour guides. We'll begin with a beautiful drive through the Fingerlakes region The changing colors of the leaves will delight you almost as much as Lillian serenading you with Disney hits on the way Until we arrive at a lovely little town called Naples. First, we'll hike Grimes Glen You can feel the crystal clear water run across your feet You'll marvel at the sunlight shining through the trees that overarch the path You'll giggle with delight at the giant waterfall cascading down the limestone precipice And like a little child, you'll scramble up its face and dance in its gentle spray. Next, a stop at Cindy's house. You'll taste your very first bite of Concord Grape Pie. Cindy sells her pies from her front door. We'll eat the pie right in the car, because it's just that tasty . And you'll realize that grape juice is not the only Nor the greatest gift ...

When Trent's identical twin brother, Troy, got married, Trent actually bemoaned it more than once. Why did Troy have to go off and settle down, he wondered, when things were just getting fun? Unlike many young men and young women in their early twenties, Trent wanted nothing to do with settling down. He wanted adventure and fun and education and travel all without--what he then perceived to be--the fetters of family life. Trent whined to Troy how Troy could leave him and marry so quickly - couldn't he wait a little while so they could have a double wedding?  Troy's response was more prophetic than he realized:  "No way, man. You won't get married for at least ten years!" While others around him married, had children, and settled into a life of domestic bliss, Trent finished college degree after degree, took part in every possible internship and study abroad available to him, took exciting vacations, and dated every girl that he could. Yes, the stories of Tre...