The striped stray first visited us the week I painted our red shed. Thin and curious, it buried its face in the herb pot on the back deck, deeply inhaling the fragrance of rosemary and basil. When the cat noticed me watching, instead of slinking away, it sat down and …
I don’t know who built the rustic shed in our backyard—but thank you. I do know that before the Preacher and I bought that solid wood structure, one or both of us stood each spring (with many of my Yorkton area readers) in front of its open drop-walled side at …
On June 10th, someone posted this ad on the website, Kijiji. You’ll have no difficulty imagining the snipped-out parts. “I have 2 dozen goats I need to get rid of. I had no idea raising goats would be this hard. These little *** keep eating all my wife’s flowers and …
Drinking. Texting. Sleeping. When my car suddenly veered right—and right off the road—this morning on the way to work, anyone observing likely ticked one of those off in their mind. I plead innocent on all three counts. I’ve lately used my twenty-minute commute to and from the office to listen …
Marriage: the extreme race; a relentless exercise of repeated acts contrary to human nature—not getting one’s own way and putting another’s needs above one’s own. Many enter. Some race for life. Before my parents’ wedding, they stole off to have lunch at a café in a nearby town. They enjoyed …
While driving north a few weeks ago, the Preacher and I noticed what looked like dozens of charming white sailboats dotting the wind-ruffled surface of a lake ahead. Nearer the water, we realized our mistake. Instead of sailboats, we saw a large flock of pelicans—fishing. Their recent catch still draped …
The Preacher and I sometimes fill a long-vacant pulpit in a nearby city church that just celebrated its 100th year. The steeple over the red brick structure still punctures the sky, though the bell tower is empty and inside, the antique pews more than half so. Yet like the oil …
“Isn’t it nice we’re having weather?” one of our friends regularly quips, in an unexpected twist of phrase. We’ve had a bit of twisty weather in my part of Saskatchewan lately. At work recently, I kept one ear to the Weather Network as forecasters issued warnings of severe fronts approaching. …
“Goin’ for a ride on my scooter,” the Preacher said. “Here’s the cell in case your sister texts back,” I muttered an absent-minded response and resumed writing. Ninety minutes later, I noticed the phone beside my computer, recalled his comment, and worried he’d been gone so long. At that exact …
No answer. Not at the front door, not at the back door. And the place looked a little lifeless. The Preacher frowned. “That’s funny. You told them the right day, didn’t you?” “Of course!” I said. “And I just talked with them earlier today.” We’d hadn’t visited Aunt Alma and …
