Once again I am saying goodbye. I am at the airline gate, watching the back of my son's head as he reaches the last possible point to turn around and catch my eye.  But then he waves goodbye, without even glancing back. He always does that, it makes me crazy. He knows I am still…

Our apartment is directly across the street from a popular health club. I can stand at my kitchen window and watch some guy on a treadmill reach his personal best. I can see a Spandex-clad woman tinkering with the scales to make sure she hasn't gained a pound. And with my warped imagination, at night…

I am in Paris, sitting on a bench, inside the Musée de l' Orangerie, surrounded by Claude Monet's Water Lilies. The painting wraps all the way around the enormous room. It feels like I am in a large garden, on the banks of a vibrant pool of light and shadows and, of course, the lilies.…

I swim out beyond the little cove at the local beach. Past the dock, past the lifeguard and past the other swimmers enjoying their holiday. Even beyond the kayakers and the sailboats. The water is cold and clear swirling beneath my near-numb fingers. Looking up with my tired eyes, I see that on three sides…

I had a dream about Mom last night. In the dream, I was looking at an old photograph of her and then instantly the picture turned into her. She was alive. The warm sun was shining behind her and her face was bathed in gold. The feeling was utterly peaceful. She just sat beside me…

I know it's starting to feel more like home here because I'm baking bread. The first few efforts were pretty measly, the one with the weird dinkel flour was too dry and the other loaves came out thin and flat. I'm working with different altitude, strange yeasts and foreign grains, but my substitutions and makeshift…