Life - grace grits and gardening

Writing a book. Ignoring everything else.

June 25, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

I have big plans. Things I intend to accomplish around the house and beyond. Really, I do. Like the empty flower pots on the front porch and the planter boxes overgrown with mint. This is the first summer those pots have been ignored. Yesterday I thought about planting red and white flowers for 4th of July, that’s what I envision anyway, and maybe caladiums for height. This morning those pots look the same. Ignored. I’m surprised my neighbors haven’t intervened.

I also plan to get back to yoga regularly. And the messy bookcase in our bedroom needs attention. I want to help cook lunch for the VBS kids this week. Really, I do.

Yet all I do is write. All.I.Do.

For those of you who occasionally ask when can we buy your book, I offer this excuse/explanation.

I’m rewriting my entire manuscript, changing it from memoir to fiction, novella to novel, 125 pages to 300. This has taken a while, but I’m at the editing stage. At least I think I am. When I began this book writing journey, I had no idea what I was in for, but I am obsessed, and I love it. Manipulating sentencing, choosing words, bringing something ordinary to life. Except when I want to pull out my hair.

What’s my timeline? I’m still not sure, but I’m writing as fast as I can, and I’m getting closer (I think). My neglected flower pots out front are certain proof.

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

“E.L. Doctorow said once said that ‘Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.’ You don’t have to see where you’re going, you don’t have to see your destination or everything you will pass along the way. You just have to see two or three feet ahead of you. This is right up there with the best advice on writing, or life, I have ever heard.”
― Anne Lamott

my twist on Twist Arkansas

June 19, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

While visiting the Southern Tenant Museum in Tyronza, I heard about a restored dog-trot house in Twist, Arkansas. I added the dog-trot house to my list of things to see. But first of all, I had to find Twist. I’d never had reason to visit.

There were more grain bins than people in Twist. And most of the barns and buildings had been swallowed in vines. But around every bend in the Delta, there is deep southern history. Twist was no different. B. B. King played in a Twist nightclub in the 1950’s. During one of his performances, two guys began fighting over a woman named Lucille, knocked over a kerosene heater and burned down the building. King’s guitar narrowly escaped. After that, he named all his guitars “Lucille”.

photo courtesy of www.weeklygrist.wordpress.com

Very cool.

But I was on a mission to find the dog-trot house. It was easy to spot in the middle of nowhere. Fully restored, the house is a historical monument to another time when cooking and dining occurred on one side of the structure, sleeping on the other. The center “dog-trot” breezeway provided a cooler place to sit when life did not include air-conditioning.

As I snapped pictures, I became intrigued by a lone tree standing in the field beyond the dog-trot passageway. Perfectly framed, it turned out to be an old family cemetery.

Richards Cemetery, Crittenden County, Arkansas

More exploring for me.

A few feet away, a fallen monument, partially hidden in the weeds. I wondered about the people who worked this land and were laid to rest on this property.

William Richards, Crittenden County, Ar, Richards Cemetery

William Richards. Born January 186x, Died 1900

Spending time in this small, nearly forgotten cemetery seemed right. It was Father’s Day. I was feeling reflective. Homesick for Dallas yet sad to be leaving the Delta again. This little adventure provided another reminder of my fleeting time and the importance of those who came before me.

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

“Funny when you’re dead how people start listenin’…” – The Band Perry

Musical Pairings:

If I Die Young, The Band Perry

Lucille, B. B. King

How to make a clover bracelet

June 17, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

A few weeks ago I posted a photo of clover on my Facebook page. It was a popular picture, bringing lots of comments about playing in clover patches and making clover bracelets and necklaces. But I was surprised to learn there were people who had never heard of this childhood ritual.

Last week at the Hemingway-Pfeiffer writer retreat, our conversation turned to the importance of telling our stories. Stories that will soon be lost if left untold. Things that today’s kids may not know.

Like making homemade ice cream. Pouring ice and salt around the canister. Turning the crank until it wouldn’t churn. Covering the freezer with a thick towel. Waiting and waiting for fresh peach ice cream. The process was one of the best parts of summer.

And making clover necklaces and bracelets? I decided I’d better write about it. It’s worth remembering.

Step One. On a sunny spring day, gather clover.

Step Two. Press a small slit in the stem of the first clover about an inch from the flower. The stems are tender, so this can easily be done with your fingernail. Ideally, clover necklaces are made on the school playground surrounded by best friends, laughter and daydreams. No utensils required…

Step Three. Thread the stem of a second clover through the slit of the first stem. Repeat this process, making your next slit on the second clover. Weave the third clover through the slit on the second clover. Don’t overthink. Remember, this is a fun, easy, imperfect activity.

Step Four. Continue until your clover rope has reached the size you want for a bracelet, necklace or crown. Yes, clover crowns were all the rage on the Keiser Elementary School fourth grade playground…

Step Five. Connect the last clover to the first stem the same way, with a small slit. Now your clover ring is connected. Snip the long pieces of stem if you prefer.