I'm just trying to walk myself home.
It’s been a little over six weeks since we boarded a plane in Switzerland to come back to the US. Back home. Taido is teaching for the fall at Lyon College, a small liberal arts school that is about ninety minutes up the road from where I spent most of my childhood. It’s a …
ROME ITALY The face I’m making in this picture could be summed up like this: OH MY GOSH I’M IN ROME AND THERE ARE A MILLION PEOPLE EVERYWHERE AND I WANT TO GO BACK TO TUSCANY BUT ACTUALLY IT’S REALLY BEAUTIFUL HERE BUT I’M EXPERIENCING SENSORY OVERLOAD SO…GELATO IS THE ANSWER FOR EVERYTHING! I am …
On our first day in Tuscany, my sister drove and I navigated. Between giving her the next directions (3 more kilometers on this road and then turn left) and catching up on stories about our kids, we were gasping at the scenery. Anna, look! Vineyards and towers on hills and cypress trees and red poppies …
The scent of ylang ylang filled the air, knocking me over with its sweetness. I looked up from the map I was following to stop and smell the flowers, then to see the columns, and to smile at the bright blue sky. A few blocks later, I found my hotel, dropped my backpack and crossed …
A Letter To My Children About Making Time For Creativity Dear Sweet Ones, I want to tell you something about creativity. To create is to reflect the image of God, the Creator. To create anything is to participate in the divine purpose for which we were made. I hope you will let those words sink …
Hello friends, We’ve had a mixture of blue skies and rainy days over the last couple of weeks here in Tübingen. We had friends come to visit and they definitely experienced a bit of every kind of weather. We even had a bit of snow. We headed back to Castle Lichtenstein where we had a …
It seems ages ago now I walked the smokey gray cobbled streets of Antigua with my boys. We spent a couple of nights here after our week at Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. The city noises were jarring after a week of hearing mostly just the wind or the occasional boat motor. Antigua is loud and lively. …
The boys went back to school this morning after two weeks of being at home. It was the first long stretch of school holidays in several years where we opted not to travel. Mary Polly came through on her way to Dresden. We went on lots of day hikes. We had new friends around most …
The last few weeks in Tübingen, Germany have been so gorgeous that I am not going to complain about the fact that for some strange reason, it has been snowing here for the last two days. I just hope the snow doesn’t freeze or destroy all the sweet blossoms that are popping out everywhere. …
Lake Atitlan Guatemala Over a month ago (or maybe it was a lifetime ago), we flew to Guatemala to join Taido’s family for a week on Lake Atitlán and a few days in Antigua. My mother-in-law has been raving about the beauty of this lake for years, so we were excited to leave winter in …
Hello friends, Since my last pipeline, I have been to Guatemala, had my mama (plus a few other Arkansans!) come to visit and watched the glorious arrival of spring in Germany! It’s been a wonderful month of connecting face to face with people. Lots of eye contact and soul-nourishing talks across tables. April will …
Happy Ten Year Blog Anniversary to Me! Ten years ago I started writing on the internet, and to celebrate that little milestone, I am releasing a little 60-page book of letters I wrote right here: It’s called Letters from Alison. I hope you enjoy it! Blogging has been the most wonderful gift to me as …
A Letter to My Ten Year Old Son Upon The Election of Donald Trump To The Office of President I wrote this letter back in November and held onto it because I felt like it sounded a bit alarmist. I opened it again just a couple of weeks ago and I was surprised to discover …
February 28, 2017 Dear White People (including myself), As Black History Month wraps up, I want to make a plea that we all choose not be done with Black History for the year. Current events are daily revealing how necessary it is that all Americans learn Black History all year long. For how long? For …
Hello! We’ve had a full month friends. I finished up my German class, went to Strasbourg, did lots of ghost blog/website writing AND my friend Sandra came back to visit! We went on long walks in and around Tübingen and stayed up into the wee hours talking about everything under the sun. It was just delightful. …
Winter Germany Walking Winter is finally letting up here in Germany, but we’ve had lots of snow and icy days since December. There have been lots of frosty walks, and attempts to get our faces in the sun. Although there were many days in January when there was no sun to be found. Still, the …
One of the advantages of where we live in Germany is that we are just a few hours from several other European countries. So earlier this winter we headed to the closest French town west of us: Strasbourg. I’m surprised it took us this long to get to Strasbourg because we have a dear friend who …
Walking and Eating in Venice with Walks of Italy I think that you plan a trip to Venice because you’ve seen how gorgeous it is in pictures and in films. And when you go, the canals, bridges and alleys of Venice will totally fulfill your expectations by being as enchanting as you always imagined. But another reason …
Me to Taido in October: Oh my goodness. Direct flights to Venice from Stuttgart are less than $20 right now! What do you think? Christmas in Italy. We could surprise the kids! Taido: Let’s do it. (My husband is a man of few words.) It’s funny how many of our trips have begun with an exchange like …
Two Saturdays ago, I was sitting in my kitchen listening to the Hamilton Mixed Tape and keeping an eye on a cake baking in the oven. I had volunteered to bring dessert to church lunch the next day, borrowing two sheet pans from the church kitchen in order to bake my Grandmother’s chocolate cake for …