Category: Uncategorized

A simple duet performed by sisters.
The metronome in the corner is used for practice.
There are apps for that now.
The round Seabee plaque on the wall is to honor our father.
He was in Vietnam while we stayed in Port Hueneme (why Nee me).
I no longer remember what song we played.
My dad eventually returned from his war duties.
We moved across the country soon after his return
Our piano moved with us and I continued to take lessons.
My sister's flute was easier to pack and it too traveled with us.
She switched to a piccolo when she joined a marching band.
Two years later I joined the same marching band.
I became a flag girl.
I no longer play the piano since it was sold when I was in high school.
I was not an exceptional player, so my interest wondered away.
The experience was worthwhile even if I did not progress.
Perhaps if my fingers had been longer or my palm had a wider stretch,
it would not have seemed so hard. 
There was no passion between me and the piano, so my piano playing ended.

“Recently, there has been movement to have the Chincoteague pony declared the official pony of Virginia. Delegate Robert Bloxom (R) and Senator Lynwood Lewis (D) have introduced to the Virginia Legislature a pair of bills doing just that. If the bills pass, the ponies will join the northern cardinal, brook trout, and American foxhound as official Virginia state fauna.” (Quote taken from Chesapeake Bay Magazine, February 3, 2023.)

The bill passed and the governor signed it into law.

All pictures were taken by Katherine J. Krein

Thanksgiving 2010

The pictures were taken by me, Katherine J. Krein.

The nights songs of my pond amphibians fill the air 
around my house and garden this time of year.
These songs are a sure sign of summer. 
Their mating calls herald their eager presence.
With their success the pond fills with tiny tadpoles.
Over time their numbers thin and 
they become food for predators 
or learn to hide in order to survive.

We were country girls during the summer when school was out.

We visited farms and had picnics with home-made ice cream.

We went fishing and had fish fries with hushpuppies and coleslaw.

Grandfather was the gardener and grandmother was the canner.

Fresh home grown vegetables were a dinner staple.

We swam in our grandfather’s lake which was made into the local swimming hole with a dock as slick as snot.

We wore clothes our grandmother made for us, and some times I wore hand-me-downs since I was the youngest.

We sat on the big covered front porch of our grandparents farmhouse and told ghost stories.

Fireflies lit up the night and my grandfather once gifted me with a firefly ring.

The picture above is of me, my sister, and one of our cousins.

Our grandmother can be seen behind us.

On this particular day the black hen laid an egg in my sister’s lap!

“Rain is grace; rain is the sky descending to the earth; without rain there would be no life.” John Updike

The overcast sky dominated the day. 
The soft gray clouds blanketed the sky and lazily lingered for hours.
The rain stayed shyly hidden and teased the anxious gardener looking upward for relief.

At one point the clouds began to open and revealed some blue.
I was in a hospital and not out in the garden, and yet, I too hoped for rain.
The beautiful blue was not appreciated.

The hospital window gave us a tall and wide view of the sky.
I turned my back on this view, so as not to dwell in disappointment.

A technician came into the room looking for an IV machine.
She commented on the beautiful window view we had there.
I nodded my head and agreed with her, though I barely glanced back.

It was not long after she left I heard the sound of rain.
I turned around to see a heavy rain pouring out of the sky.
My heart rejoiced.

Eventually the rain tapered to a slow and light pace.
The gentle and steady flow of water is greatly needed.
All the gray in the sky was knitted together once more.
No threats of thunder or lightning were imminent.

The rain was reassuring to me.
I was refreshed along with the nearby grounds and gardens.