All The Home Forum
Paddling down memory lane: Our big fish storyThe dip and plunk of paddles, the ripples on the lake. For Dad and me, fishing is a beloved family ritual. Our biggest catch? Time spent together.
Mrs. Tippet’s school of life: The teacher who made me fall in love with writingWith her gold-tipped fountain pen, fanciful flourishes, and after-recess story times, my fifth grade teacher indelibly shaped my career – and life.
A bittersweet farewell: I’m a New Yorker, but Mississippi has my heartWhen a born-and-bred New Yorker prepares to move back to the big city, he discovers that Mississippi has made itself at home in his heart.
As summer wanes, I'm chasing flickers of nostalgia by the campfireI yearned for my childhood summers by the lake. With my son, I have a chance to revisit that enchantment.
Hot crabs and cold lemonade: A window into my Cajun childhoodFamily dinners are a powerful means of connection, anchoring, and belonging. For our writer, Cajun country crab nights brought a sense of kinship.
How a juicy Dixon watermelon helped me conjure carefree childhood summersProust had his madeleine. I had a juicy red watermelon to transport me to beloved summers past.
The great garden glut of 2024: How I survived the summer of 10,000 beans.In the garden, there’s only one thing that multiplies faster than rabbits. Read on – I’m spilling the beans.
How surfing helped me conquer corporate burnoutUsed to playing the expert, a corporate strategist trades her pantsuit for a wetsuit, starts surfing, and learns that being a novice is exhilarating.
What traveling without a plan taught me about serendipityTraveling without a plan or guidebook may seem radical. It’s my way of preserving the serendipity and romance of adventure.
I plead quilty: Why I inflicted a madcap, modern spin on an old-fashioned artIn an era of mass consumption, our writer reminds us of the forgotten art of creating something from scratch.
A ‘Walden’ way of seeing the world: How I found calm in Thoreau’s wordsDuring anxious times, I found inspiration in Thoreau’s classic “Walden.” Here are my four mindfulness takeaways.
My first job kindled heartache – and hard lessonsAs I discovered during my first job at the tender age of 12, the old adage is true: Experience really is the best teacher.
An invitation to celebrate, console, connect – it’s tea-o’clockWhat’s lost in a society that prizes productivity? The sweetest moments are found when we slow down and take time for tea.
My summertime rite of passage? Picking buckets of berries (with bears).Summers past were reserved for picking berries with bears, a snapshot of central Pennsylvania summer idyll.
She needed a notary. How a Holocaust survivor became a friend.A routine notary task blossomed into a beautiful friendship with my neighbor Ann, a Holocaust survivor.
The grass wasn’t greener – turning my lawn into a garden ate my time and freed my mindSo what if my turf-free lawn is labor-intensive? The zen I find puttering in my garden is priceless.
Empty nest, full heart: My adventures in cat-sittingWhen my kids flew the coop, I turned to cats. It turns out caring for cats is a lot like parenting adolescents.
A potato masher, didgeridoo, and, uh, six vacuums. Why I rescue trash.Rescuing, repairing, and reusing abandoned items is a lost art and a boon to the environment. It can also spark unexpected adventures.
A love letter to lilacs and the joys of fleeting pleasureThe mission to capture my lilac’s fleeting scent was a flop. What I gained instead was far greater: a reminder to be present during its brief season.
Behind the verse: Six Monitor poets share why they write poetryIt’s no secret that poetry is one of the least lucrative forms of writing. So what keeps poets returning to write poems? We asked six contributors where they draw their inspiration.
