-
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
ivanbenson on The Big Eraser Anonymous on The Big Eraser ivanbenson on The Gift of Memory ivanbenson on The Gift of Memory ivanbenson on The Impossible Dream Archives
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- December 2021
- September 2021
- July 2021
- May 2021
- September 2020
- August 2020
- June 2020
- April 2020
- December 2019
- July 2019
- January 2019
- October 2018
- May 2018
- April 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- October 2017
- August 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- January 2017
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- June 2013
- May 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
Categories
Meta
Category Archives: Stories
Will
“It sounds like you’re getting to do many of the things that bring joy to you. And that is very good!” These were the words of my friend, Will, spoken to me almost a decade ago. They still resonate with … Continue reading →
The Biltmore Estate
Today my wife and I visited The Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina. It was our first visit. And what a delight it was, too. If you’ve never been there you must put this on your bucket list; it is … Continue reading →
Posted in Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged 1888, 1895, 1914, 1930, 1956, All's right with the world, Asheville, Asia, Austria, Biltmore, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Crazy Horse, Easter 2004, El Capitan, Europe, Franz Joseph Haydn, George Vanderbilt, Grand Tetons, grandeur, Great Depression, Kentucky, Kilimanjaor, majesty, Mount Everest, Mount Rushmore, Noah's Ark, North Carolina, Redwood, Robert Browning, Saint Michael's Cathedral, Sequoia, size, spendor, Stone Mountain Park, Vienna
|
6 Comments
Metaphor: the Essential Ingredient
We lost a famous poet this past week at the age of 87; his name was Derek Walcott. Today, NPR has been featuring his work, and discussing his effect on humanity. In one sense, I must confess I don’t know … Continue reading →
Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged 87, agnostic, atheist, Derek Walcott, DNA, facts, Goridan Knots, hyperbole, illustrative, Into the West, metaphor, primal nature, realm, sacred, sentient, the full spectrum, The Lord of the Rings, the whole truth, war atrocities
|
7 Comments
The True Cost
It’s hard to know what something really costs, isn’t it? I mean, if you buy a piece of clothing you find appealing, and you begin to explore where it was made, who designed it, how and by whom it was … Continue reading →
Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged "Time is money", 20 pound hammer, 2016, 21st century, Americans, Apple watch, cancer, cost-conscious, counting the cost, criminal indictments, decay, Europe, extraction, Germany, hard working, heart attack, heart disease, hell bent, holiday, Holland, insider trading, iPad, iPhone, John Henry, lazy, movies, Operating System, pace of life, pioneers, pulling teeth, raison d'etre, rest, Rudyard Kipling, sixty seconds worth of distance run, standard of living, steel-driving, stress, taken us captive, tax evasion, television, the Jones's, The true cost, work
|
4 Comments
A Real Tool: the Coping Saw
My father was good with tools! Especially when working with wood. His father was born in Sweden in 1878, and Dad used to have some of his father’s tools until thieves broke into his and Mom’s Tucson, AZ house years … Continue reading →
Posted in Family History, Fathers, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged 1878, AZ, Christmas, coping saw, coping skills, Dad, father, fears, Flexibility, force, Forgiveness, Gentleness, grandfather, holidays, inauguration, insecurity, Jesus, Joseph, Mary, Mom, New Year, president, stress, Sweden, the unknown, tools, Tucson, uncertainty, worry
|
2 Comments
My Adventure: Simplicity
Simplicity. It’s one of those things that many of us had as children, but at an age when we were incapable of appreciating it. It occurs when the stuff of life is boiled down (so to speak) to its essential … Continue reading →
Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged 2017, adventure, clarity, disaster, focus, heart attack, neutraceuticals, purpose, simplicity, stop and smell the roses, tragedy
|
12 Comments
Will You ALWAYS Want to be With Me?
Sometimes the most arresting questions seem to come “out of the” proverbial “blue.” And often, they come from a source you would not expect. This particular question came from my grandson; he is 5 1/2, going on 25. My wife … Continue reading →
Posted in Aging Parents, Assisted Living, Family History, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged Art Linkletter, behavior, boundless, career, children, divorce, Dunkin Donuts, elderly, foster growth, grandchildren, granddaughter, grandson, honesty, independent living, kids say the darndest things, live out the words, natural candor, need to be wanted, nursing home, out of the blue, profundity, security, sought after, teenagers, the power of words, unhappiness, want to be needed
|
4 Comments
The New Abnormal
Ever since a close friend visited me in the hospital, and mentioned to my wife that we will now have to adjust to “the new normal” (post heart attack), we have batted that expression around and discussed the variety of … Continue reading →
Posted in Family History, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged acceptance, cardiac rehab, change in plans, dashed dreams, December 7, disabled, ejection fraction, emotional lens, fantasy world, heart attack, Landon Saunders, Life, life threatening, myocardial infarction, new abnormal, new normal, perspective, psyche, psychotic, ramifications, reevaluate, refocus, surrender, unexpected tragedy, use your wounds as tools
|
15 Comments
The Making of a Widow (Part 5)
Anyone who has watched a sporting event where the sidelines of the competition are crowded with spectators, has no doubt been witness to, at one time or another, what could fairly be termed collateral damage. I’m talking about the tackle … Continue reading →
Posted in Assisted Living, Family History, Podcast, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged basketball, before and after, brother, cameraman, cheerleaders, collateral damage, cousin, Facebook, father, football, friends, heart attack, husband, memories, Montana, neighbors, nephew, No man is an island, October 4, students
|
8 Comments
The Making of a Widow (Part 4)
“Timing is everything.” It’s true in comedy; a vocally well delivered line can fall flat if the timing is off. Exactly when a pause is required, or an inflection employed can bring an audience to tears of laughter, or . … Continue reading →
Posted in Family History, Fathers, Stories, Uncategorized
|
Tagged cardiologist, cath lab, coincidence, cousin, EKG, eulogized, father, Feb. 11 1961, general practitioner, Georgia, grandfather, harmonies, heart attack, ICU, intersections, LAD artery, maternal grandfather, musical composer, Oct. 3 2016, Oct. 4 2016, patterns, sense of timing, Snellville, timing, timing is everything, tombstones, unseen divine determinant
|
2 Comments
The Lost Story 