Eliza Daley ~ Wordcraft & Musing on Home & Hope
I don't like Thanksgiving. I never have. I don't appreciate the the days of preparation necessary for one meal, much of which becomes an endless stream of leftovers that nobody wants to touch. I can't eat the sugary things anymore and don't want to eat a turkey. I spend far too much money to find… Continue reading Wednesday Word: 24 November
It’s my birthday. Think I might be seventy-eight. Hard to keep track of things like that. There was that kerfuffle over calendars, some folks demanding a clean slate. As if the year number could erase history. As if anything could clean up this mess. But if it makes them feel better, it also doesn’t hurt… Continue reading Apple Cake: Winifred Mumbles
The predicted snow arrived last night. It is mostly over now. First snow doesn't linger, though the cold still steals into the gaps around these old windows. I'm looking out on a damp grey world, more than halfway to winter sleep. But lilacs and oaks seem caught unawares, with green and yellow leaves hanging limp.… Continue reading Wednesday Word: 17 November
I planted bulbs today. Daffodils and hyacinth, snowdrops and cyclamen, tulips and lilies. I put in a few peony and daylily roots also. There was not much of any one thing, but then my flower gardens are small so I don't need much of anything to make a big impact on the nose and eyes.… Continue reading Wednesday Word: 10 November
It is November. This happens every year. Not just the month happens, but this dismal in between time. There's all this hoopla and hurrah all through the autumn. All through the growing season actually. It culminates with El Día de los Muertos, which is hoopla defined. Flowers, food, music. Family, fun, gathering. Bit too much… Continue reading Wednesday Word: 3 November
It is the season of the witch. Time for the maids, mothers, and crones to dance the spiral. Time to grab the broom and clean up all the messes. Time for stories and spells in the basement. Time to gather around the hearth. Time to wear midnight and sturdy boots, masks and tall hats. Time… Continue reading Wednesday Word: 27 October 2021
I could not let this full moon go by without a tale, however short. This is the time of the Wild Hunt and the end of the season of growth. So I have a bit of dark poetry to read by the light of the full moon. remembrance we clamor after infinity with braying horns… Continue reading Hunter’s Moon
The ancient world of the Mediterranean and Near East has a great number of interesting mythological beings. Some are related to old gods and tutelary spirits. Some are fairly accurate illustrations of the anxieties of humankind — or maybe mankind, since women didn't have much of a voice. Some are just ludicrous. One of my… Continue reading Wednesday Word: 29 September 2021
The old lady swept her walk every morning in the dawn light and tended her garden at dusk. She was unknown and unnoticed in the neighborhood. Kept to herself. Smiled at small children and dogs on leashes passing by her gate but did not encourage conversation. She was unremarkable in every way, forgotten as soon… Continue reading Invisible Crows
He was a good boy. Did his chores without prompting. Loved his mama and daddy. Listened and more or less obeyed when big people spoke. He was a tidy child. Washed his hands and brushed his teeth with hardly any cajoling. Kept his room clean. Put his washed laundry away in an orderly system of… Continue reading Summer King Harvest
By My Solitary Hearth 