by Liz A | Dec 22, 2022 | Pepper and Bear
A dependable pair of muckers Can an Army wife retire? Chop, chop – the steel blades slid past each other like the propellers of the Black Hawk helicopters flying past the bathroom skylights of my Northern Virginia townhouse. Chop, chop… chop, chop, the metal smashed...
by Liz A | Feb 11, 2022 | Pepper and Bear
Born during a “wolf winter” Snow baby: Joseph Michael For winter lovers, snow symbolizes a season of rebirth, not just death. The middle of winter is the coldest and darkest time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. Yet, for those tuned into nature, the hibernal period...
by Liz A | Dec 27, 2021 | Pepper and Bear
Rainbow baby Samuel Henry Rainbows symbolize hope. Hence, why rainbow babies exemplify a promise to parents grieving the loss of a prior infant or unborn child—helping overcome the heartbreak. Because “when you lose a baby, you develop a permanent psychological scar....
by Liz A | Nov 22, 2021 | Pepper and Bear
The dandelion A narrative about Danny The flower with scores of bright yellow pedals is a member of the daisy family. But because its seeds spread easily by way of its gray fluff—carried off on the wind or blown by some small child—the dandelion offends modern...
by Liz A | Oct 19, 2021 | Pepper and Bear
Valentine Excerpt from Easy Street: Based on my mother’s memoir Without averting her eyes from the tabernacle, Baba brushed the top of Diane’s head with a kiss. The beads of her rosary slid through her knotted fingers, click, click. Over and over, she murmured her...
by Liz A | Aug 16, 2021 | Pepper and Bear
Battle buddies A note with the 20th anniversary of 9/11 approaching and current events. As a long time Army wife, I’m not really surprised at the current chaos in the Middle East, and doubt most of those who served there or who’ve intimately supported the troops, is...