I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America I am six years old, in first grade and I have never said The Pledge of Allegiance before. At my Quaker kindergarten, we didn’t recite it. I’m nervous to get it right. Each morning as I stand with the class, I whisper to […]

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  • June 10, 2020 - 10:41 pm

    Margaret - I love the structure of this, as well as the message, and you hooked me immediately with each little personal vignette you offered tied to the pledge. On the final one, I think it might be helpful to have a similar personal anecdote to tie it all together. The words of the pledge make for a strong hook and I think with a personal note, you could go where you need to and tie it all together.ReplyCancel

    • June 11, 2020 - 10:34 am

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Margaret, thanks for that feedback, I struggled with the end, and you are exactly right!ReplyCancel

  • June 10, 2020 - 11:03 pm

    Jen Mierisch - I like how you structured this, with the Pledge becoming rote and less meaningful at the same time as you become more aware of the bad stuff happening in the country. I’m not even sure if my own kids say the Pledge anymore. Very thought provoking, and you’re right, we’ve never really had “liberty and justice for all.”ReplyCancel

    • June 11, 2020 - 10:35 am

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Thanks Jen.ReplyCancel

  • June 12, 2020 - 12:01 pm

    YeahWrite #478 Weekly Writing Challenge Winners - […] of disparate parts together into one whole, cohesive piece. Take a look at Nancy’s essay, The Pledge of Allegiance. She uses each phrase to illustrate her changing relationship to the pledge and to connect a […]ReplyCancel

How can I write when the world is on fire? There is the non-stop noise of helicopters through my windows, how can I write? My country is on fire, and the President is spreading gasoline, how can I write? People are succumbing by the thousands to a pandemic that ravages communities in disproportionate, direct, and […]

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Posted in Corona Virus,eating well,Family,love,self image
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  • June 4, 2020 - 8:26 pm

    Jen Mierisch - “What do my words matter?” They matter a lot. This is an eloquent description of what many of us are feeling right now, like the world’s on fire. I’ve hardly written a thing since the pandemic started – I can’t seem to get my head in the game. IMO there’s nothing wrong with writing about the tuna and the car. There’s only so much news we can watch, and I for one would welcome a nice food story to distract me and remind me there are good things in the world.ReplyCancel

    • June 5, 2020 - 10:40 am

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Thank you for Jen. I am definitely feeling saturated with what seems like an endless stream of bad news. There are indeed good things, as these terrible times are bringing out both the best and worst in people.ReplyCancel

Memorial Day weekend The car was loaded with all our gear for the Memorial Day weekend trip. We sat in the car in the pre-dawn light, waiting. My father in his characteristic, passive-aggressive style was revving the engine loudly to let my mom know we were waiting for her. This was how all our trips […]

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Posted in eating well,Family,love,Travel
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  • May 27, 2020 - 10:42 pm

    Hema N - Nancy, you pulled me right in with this essay. This is such a fabulous peek into your childhood, the relationship between your parents and how that affected you.”I’m not sure how long it took me to start breathing again, but I think it was at least a few hours.” I love the form, especially the sub-titles. “Odd puzzle” is my favorite!ReplyCancel

  • May 28, 2020 - 3:10 am

    Shilpa Gupte - Families are like jigsaw puzzles…how true! But I still feel families had been the kind of puzzles where all the pieces fit perfectly with the others.ReplyCancel

    • May 28, 2020 - 9:00 am

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Thanks, Shilpa, I wish I could share your POV on families fitting perfectly… Ours was a blended family that never properly emulsified.ReplyCancel

      • June 8, 2020 - 3:06 am

        Chard Kim - I truly resonate with you. My father and mother have a rocky relationship too, although they’re making it work… My father does the aggressive revving all the time when we go somewhere. My mother too is always late and they end up arguing all the way. Families really are jigsaw puzzles, a hard one that you can’t easily understand. All of us are different and don’t really seem to fit together. But what matters is that we’re still here and together. We’ve found our safe place with one another. So, maybe we’re puzzles that fit. I’m sorry for your loss.ReplyCancel

  • June 6, 2020 - 2:46 am

    MD. JAKARIA - I loved your analogy of a family like a puzzle. “Trying only accentuated all our odd shapes and edges.” Those moments of trying to fit all the pieces together can color how we see the past, so I’m glad you have those positive memories of this weekendReplyCancel

Heading out Lately, I feel as if I am shopping in the end times. I make my weekly shopping list and shop just once. Then I prepare. I make sure I have my list, mask, shopping bag, and wallet. I almost always forget my glasses and have to go back for them. My forays are […]

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  • May 21, 2020 - 5:51 am

    Danielle Dayney - We still don’t have toilet paper at our stores in Virginia! I can only find it on Wednesdays verrrrrry early in the morning.

    I think you described our new shopping experience perfectly. The preparation, the anxiety, the hand washing. I do the exact same.

    I don’t know about you, but that mask makes me feel so claustrophobic. And I catch myself smiling at strangers all the time, despite wearing it. I hope they can tell by my eyes.

    It’s nice to read your essays again!ReplyCancel

    • May 21, 2020 - 10:27 am

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Thank you Danielle. It’s great to be writing again, and I keep trying, and failing to write about something other than virus-life but it’s not working…
      BTW, the place I’ve noticed always has TP is Target, and they also have the best blackberries 🙂
      Best to you.ReplyCancel

  • May 21, 2020 - 2:08 pm

    Margaret - You’ve perfectly captured the experience of grocery shopping in a pandemic. I go back and forth on whether we will go back to shaking hands and giving hugs. I don’t know if we should, but I think we will. Humans are a social species. We may not groom each other like chimpanzees, but I think we still need that touch.ReplyCancel

    • May 26, 2020 - 12:00 pm

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Hi Margaret, each day brings new questions about what the future will bring. No doubt there will be an end to this particular madness, I sure could use a break from the daily madness we’ve lived with since before COVID 19…ReplyCancel

  • May 22, 2020 - 1:18 am

    Jen Mierisch - A vivid and apt description of grocery shopping during the COVID madness! “Disoriented” is right! I was at Target a couple of nights ago, with my list written in “store aisle order” just like yours, and I thought I did pretty well on my list despite the only paper towels being a crappy off-brand. Then when I got to the checkout, I saw several items in my cart that weren’t mine. Sometime during the shop, either someone grabbed my cart or I grabbed theirs. And we were both too distracted to notice. Sheesh, I’ve never done that before!ReplyCancel

    • May 26, 2020 - 11:58 am

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Jen, Thanks for the comment. As someone who worked in a grocery store for 13 years, I can assure you people mixing up carts is a common occurrence. That said, I understand your feelings.ReplyCancel

Time on my hands I haven’t worn a watch in almost two months, and putting mine on the other day, its weight felt unfamiliar as did the weight of time it evoked. When you are accustomed to having no time there is a subtle heaviness to having lots of it. I wear this time like one […]

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  • May 14, 2020 - 1:05 am

    hema - So good to read your essays again! I love this one. As someone with two little kids, I crave alone time, so it’s interesting to hear from someone who actually has alone time and how you’re dealing with it.ReplyCancel

    • May 14, 2020 - 12:28 pm

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Thank you! I cannot imagine how you are managing!ReplyCancel

  • May 14, 2020 - 3:20 pm

    northie - Your opening paragraph chimed with me perfectly. Not wearing a watch somehow signifies the times we live in. And your dilemma of having the time but not seeming to achieve much with it. That too, I share. Thank you for this.ReplyCancel

    • May 14, 2020 - 5:47 pm

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Thank you for your comment. I am one of those people who is so attached to my watch I panic if I forget to wear it. Now I need to remind myself to put it on.ReplyCancel

  • May 14, 2020 - 5:20 pm

    Sanch @ Sanch Writes - I really enjoyed this piece and can identify with that feeling of appearing to have more time and yet, not being able to ‘do’ enough. I loved the watch as a symbol of how some of us probably don’t need to adhere to time schedules.

    This isn’t constructive re the essay but it might appear that there is more time but the reality is with a change in our daily routines and patters, we are adapting and adjusting and that takes up a lot of time and energy, so don’t beat yourself up for not making use of all this apparent time. I’m lucky to have a job but it’s been so draining and exhausting working from home. I’ve been telling myself and my clients, one day at a time, one thing at a time.ReplyCancel

    • May 14, 2020 - 5:49 pm

      nrlowell@comcast.net - Sanch, I’m so glad you enjoyed this. I recently read an article chronicling a day in the life of a family with two kids and both parents working from home, and just reading it was exhausting! Kudos to you for keeping it together, even most of the time.ReplyCancel

  • May 15, 2020 - 5:43 am

    Dashy - You’ve covered so many aspects about time that we all struggle with. This was a nice read, with many things to relate to.ReplyCancel

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