Stiff Mother

Miss Williams looked satisfied in her mean, pinched way.  “Well,” she said, “ta-ta.” (She always said “ta-ta” instead of “goodbye.” Chicken language, it sounded like.) As soon as Miss Williams was gone and my mother was sitting down again, I burst into tears.  Kneeling on the floor, I buried my head in her lap and…

Unload the Quiver

I had a thought the other day about parenting.  Big deal.  But, I liked it and I think I’ve hit on a true principle so I’m going to share it. Sometimes when we tell our children (or anyone for that matter…a spouse, a co-worker, a pet) ‘no’ or ‘don’t do that’ or place any kind of…