Looking back with Lot's Wife

June 16, 1999 Ah spring time—the only pretty ring time! I don’t think enough research is being done on the cyclical nature of our urges. Shakespeare celebrated the desires of lovers in “As You Like It”—spring, ring, it worked for him. For me, I get an uncontrollable urge to garden. I love to root around outside in spring. It rains and automatically I dig, plant, dream and imagine exotic vegetables, colorful bouquets. I design intricate flower beds; I chase those baby weeds as if they were the sins of the past being rooted out of my life. Never, ever, once in my life have I had any desire to weed in July—but in May, it’s a compulsion. In summer I’m seduced into thinking that the grass will always be green, my toes will never be cold, and the long, lazy days will stretch ahead of me forever. Summer is a tall cold glass of lemonade, a hammock, kids at the pool and me with a “beach book.” I can’t imagine working in July—July is vacations. (However, I don’t always tell this to my kids. Summ...

June 2, 1999 “As we parents go forth from this place to serve, we pledge…” I’ve been to three graduations this last two weeks and I’ve felt teary-eyed, fearful, hungry, thirsty, lost, enlightened and bored. I’ve been there as a parent, an aunt and a friend of the newly anointed. I’ve been amazed and humbled by the quality of young people in our society. And I think the thing that confuses me the most is the change in the status quo as each of the graduates steps forward in their new mined glory to assume their place in the world as adults. People suddenly leave my house with no more obligations to meet to be counted as “qualified.” They’re qualified to go to college or get a job and have fifteen kids if they want. My niece is qualified to be a lawyer. A lawyer! She’s qualified to take me, her poor old limping aunt, into court and sue my socks off! Holy cow. But what has their graduation qualified me to do? Can I take out an ad in the Springville Herald that promises that I can nag any...