I live on a farm in Pennsylvania Dutch country, settled in 1814—think less manicured gentry farmstead, more Grey Gardens. My days are spent playing with my spaniels; my three children are grown now. Singing has been a lifelong passion; I once sang the soprano part for the entirety of Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem, and it still visits my dreams.

I’m a descendant of Revolutionary War patriots and a registered member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, though I’ve yet to find my way into the local group.

Retired now, I spent seventeen years as a journalist and also wrote my own column for a borough voted the coolest small town in America. I hold a bachelor’s degree in commercial art and design and did graduate work in publication management at Drexel University.

These days I have plenty of time, so please, I’d like to hear from you.

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. — Matthew 11:28
(Listen to this verse set to music in Handel’s Messiah.)

Notice the cut stem. She didn't try to be perfect; instead, she left a gaping hole in the bouquet, and I find myself wondering about the story behind the cut stem. Vase with Flowers, painted by Rachel Ruysch in 1700.