Bought my first Jeep on a Friday in March. I know the precise date of that infamous Friday because I’m a teacher. On that day, I put a red bin of files and papers into my silver-new Jeep. Admin promised we’d return to the classroom. But I blinked. And opened my eyes far, far away.Continue reading “Dear Jeep Family,”
Tag Archives: memoir
Don’t Ever Tell Anybody Anything (But Here’s My Introduction)
I left home. I won’t tell where. Yet. I was born there. Parents, grandparents, too. I never left home. Not even for school. I raised family, worked hard, planned to die there. I had no reason to leave home. Until the day I heard the words, “You won’t like this.” I did not imagine leavingContinue reading “Don’t Ever Tell Anybody Anything (But Here’s My Introduction)”
To the Bullshit-Detector
I see a lot of you in my daughter. It terrifies me. You have an exceptional bullshit-detector. So does she. Of course, any observer could guess this from the way you reclined in your desk, like Jimi Hendrix on a sofa at an intimate house party (your lidded gaze and smirk suggested the same kindContinue reading “To the Bullshit-Detector”
To the Geo Tracker of the USA: Guess Which State This Is
I swore, at the age of twenty-five, I would never return. Ever. Even as an adult, when I overhear the name, or the two-letter abbreviation, I thrust myself into conversation and proclaim, “[Insert State] is the limp dick of the USA!” That is, until, my husband sat me down at the table and said, ”You’reContinue reading “To the Geo Tracker of the USA: Guess Which State This Is”
To the Off-Beaten-Never-Did-Fit-In
I remember the look on your face when I announced my leave of absence to the class. It still haunts me. You waited until the end, mouth stretched wide, “Are you really leaving?” I explained it was only temporary. You shuffled locks, looked away, “But…I like how you use the earth to tell stories….” youContinue reading “To the Off-Beaten-Never-Did-Fit-In”
Dear Colleague (I apologize in Advance for My Poetry),
Poems aren’t my thing, but here’s an odyssey of a dream. I’ll write a ballad. Google says it counts as poetry. You love this stuff. But I don’t know what the hell I’m doing. When I pressed send for the letter of resignation to the job I thought I’d never leave, I fell into theContinue reading “Dear Colleague (I apologize in Advance for My Poetry),”
For Our Favorite Pinch-Sitter,
In order to illustrate the gift you are to this earth, I’m going to take a crack at writing a children’s story. Sorry there’s no artwork. My drawing is more horrific than my poetry. *** On a hill in a flowered field I found a wishing tree. Like a firework in the sky, its branches exploded inContinue reading “For Our Favorite Pinch-Sitter,”
Dear [Insert State], Merry Friggin’ Christmas.
I don’t mean to cuss. It’s not becoming of a teacher. But I swore never return to [insert state]. EVER. That is until…well, you’ve read my other pieces. But here I am, decades later, unable to leave, being held against my will. What gives? [Insert state] must be mad I told everyone what Renee saidContinue reading “Dear [Insert State], Merry Friggin’ Christmas.”
For the Student Who Never Spoke (Or the Alternative Cinderella)
Dear Student,I don’t draw (except for chromosome diagrams and Punnet squares…and poorly). I don’t draw words; I don’t pencil stories; and I refuse to sketch poetry. But my dream is for you to unfold in a compositional mural, so I traced a fable. Sorry if I infringe upon dear, old Walt. He copied anyway (fromContinue reading “For the Student Who Never Spoke (Or the Alternative Cinderella)”
Yo, Ride-share Driver, No Hablo Español
Flip left and right to understand. Excuse the broken language; I stopped studying long ago, but I did my damndest not to rely on a translator. Quiero escribir una carta auténtica, a pesar de la barrera del idioma. Yo, Rideshare Driver, No Hablo Español. You remember me from the airport. From the backseat, I attackedContinue reading “Yo, Ride-share Driver, No Hablo Español”
No Real Balance 