10 Cuttin Sage

There are many blogs. I follow about 3. Many of them, if produced by women, have beautifully photographed recipes to accompany their thoughts, opinions, travel adventures, etc. Aren’t we so fortunate to have an outlet for all these “thinks” by way of the internet, imagining that there may be someone, somewhere, out in the vast universe, who might just care about what we have to say? If these blogs have their own websites attached to sponsors (ads), then they must be popular (enough) and there are people out there who really do care about what the blogger has to say!  I enjoy cooking, but not enough to photograph and publish every step in my cooking processes, and my recipes are not at all original. I like to travel, but I don’t often (except, of course, to Ocracoke Island) and I’m not very good at photographing things (although these iPhones have awesome cameras and you don’t have to be a photographer anymore to make ordinary things look extraordin...

Preface: a few years ago, we took a trip to the lovely tropical island of Anguilla and went on a snorkeling excursion. Upon our return our guide reminded us, in his charming British accent, to “gather our bits and pieces”. We have joked about it since and use the phrase as often as possible. March 13....It is mid March with snow on the ground; forsythia and camellia are in full bloom while the green tips of tulip and daffodil leaves are up about 6 inches: the conundrum of March in Virginia makes it hard for the body and mind to adjust! I’ve spent the past 2 and a half months on a project: cleaning out and sorting through the belongings of Great Aunt Blanche whom I’ve written about numerous times. It is fitting to write about her this week since Thursday marks her 103rd birthday! You would think that the belongings of a 103 year old would fill a barn but the truth is, she downsized many years ago when she left her home in Florida to come live near us where the majority of ...

I enjoy having a “quiet time” every morning.....I’m able to do that now that the kids are grown and I usually have no place I have to be at an early hour. I kind of feel like I’m having a cup of coffee with the Lord. First I MUST create the atmosphere: coffee (fresh ground and local roasted, of course), my bible, a devotional (I rotate Spurgeon and Chambers each year), my journal (since I like to write) and a fire if it’s winter or the porch if it’s summer. For some reason, setting the atmosphere gives me peace; I guess it helps me divorce myself from the world’s worries. In the throes of winter, I battle depression every year...February is the worst month for me. January’s not so bad because it comes on the heals of holiday celebration; newness and resolution; and anticipation of soup, football, and snow. February is now old and tired and always, it seems, Punxatawney Phil predicts 6 more weeks of same old same old and, if for some reason, he predicts an early Spring, it’s a lie. ...

I made a choice to be a stay-at-home parent about 30 years ago. When young and single, I was a prestige-seeking, briefcase- carrying, suit-wearing career woman determined to make it in the corporate world because I felt that I had to prove myself to parents (who paid for my college education and wanted more opportunity for their one and only daughter) and prove myself to academics who felt that all women needed to modernize and get involved in the feminist movement which was just beginning to blossom at that time. I felt that I had no value unless I was a college-educated career woman. However.... as the biological clock ticked on with an Energizer bunny battery and my 30’s approached with frightening speed, that “old-fashioned” nesting/nurturing instinct kicked in with equal ferocity and I soon realized that I not only wanted to be a mother but I wanted to make a serious career out of it, much more than any corporate job I had ever had! Fortunately, The Doer of All...

A week after Hurricane Maria and we are here on the island, The Doer and I.  There was little damage here on Ocracoke, praise God..... some high water which got into our little storage shed under the house, but not into the Boathouse or main cottage.  We have close family friends in Puerto Rico (we call them our Puerto Rican family, and may even be a blog subject down the road) who's lives have been traumatized by the storm; through the decimation of their yards and gardens, power outage, fear of looting, etc. but we are very thankful that they are safe and well. This was a much needed vacation after another Summer of Aunt Blanche for me and an extremely stressful work season for the Doer. So thankful for a place to get away from the “worries of the world”. The week after a fall hurricane brings with it blissful weather and the Doer and I have been soaking up the sunshine and cool breezes. October is paradise here on Ocracoke Island. The doors and windows ar...

They say that life is like the four seasons:  Spring is.....  birth, childhood, beginnings,  freedom, freshness, far-flung future, joy of the present, endless possibilities.  Summer is..... young adulthood, living in the present, vitality, busyness, planning ahead. Autumn is.....  middle-age, seriousness, questions, fleeting of the present, limited possibilities, future is now.  Winter is.....  old-age, living in the past, fear of the future, grasping at the present. I guess I’m in the Goldenrod and Sedum days of life: the Autumn; the shorter days and longer nights, the introspection of what’s left of limited possibilities, the bucket list time of life.  Spring has always been my favorite time of the year until fairly recently. Now, as beautiful and hopeful as the springtime is, it represents much hardship.... watering, weed-pulling, digging, hauling and planting which I generally love, but has gotten more d...