My thoughts turn to a fundamental ritual: the family table. After dinner on Sunday, three generations leaned into conversations, propping our elbows on the kitchen table that stood for decades through years of mischief, arguments, tears, and joy. Wherever you take a meal this holiday, I wish you sweet memories.
Author: Catherine Hamrick
Poet, storyteller, writer, and editor with a passion for wordplay, nature, and art
The Game of Naming a Cat (with Thanks to T.S. Eliot)
T.S. Eliot’s whimsical poem, “The Naming of Cats,” inspired this post about my bright-eyed black cat, Ellie.
Why I Love Appalachia: “Blue Ridge Weather Report”
In this glorious, but all-too-brief season in Appalachia, killing frost silences the nights except for the rustle of branches. Color steals across the trees, and leaves begin to drop. I wrote this poem after relocating to the South and falling in love (again) with autumn in the Blue Ridge.
The Thin Veil Between Life, Love, and Death
A World War II pharmacist mate (medic) born on November 11, my dad treated his first patients during WWII. In his office, a floral watercolor featuring 1 Corinthians 13:4-13 hung on his wall—directly behind every patient. “4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.”
Time Falls Back: The Loss of Afternoon Gold
Autumn is my favorite season with its changing colors and nip in the air. But there’s always a tradeoff. When the clock falls back, we lose the golden hour at day’s end—the price for getting an extra hour of sleep.