My parents, Shirley and Kenn Morgan, on the back steps of our apartment in Saugerties, NY, March 1969. The photo, taken by a friend and neighbor, Wes Maxwell, captures the pure joy of my father’s return after being gone for over a year. We considered ourselves lucky – he was supposed to go to Vietnam, but two weeks out from departure, on Jan. 23, 1968, the North Koreans seized the U.S. ship, The Pueblo, and…
This photo of me at age 16 was taken in the marketplace in Cambridge, England just weeks before I would leave the UK and four months before my father would retire from the US Air Force. On that rainy day, I stood between the life I had always known as a military brat and a new one as a civilian. It was not a change I wanted or welcomed, but military families do not have…
Why do people say, “God bless you” when you sneeze? Yes, I know the story … this response to sneezing dates back to the days of the plague, when sneezing was a sign that you had caught it. People said, “God bless you” because in reality, you were going to need it. In other words, “God bless you because now you’re going to die.” But why today? I find it irritating, to be honest. I…
This photo is of a practice evacuation drill on the SS United States in 1959. My mother, sister, brother and I were on our way to England to visit relatives and friends. You can see my mother to the left, with dark hair, and my sister in front of her. My brother and I are behind her, hidden by the other passengers around us. All on board are in good spirits, it seems, but a…
We’ve decided to move to England … and we are not alone. According to the U.K. 2011 census, the most recent information available, 197,355 Americans were living in Great Britain at that time, with 173,470 of them residing in England. Thanks to the current U.S. administration’s failures, upheavals and traitorous acts against the U.S. Constitution, more Yanks are moving to the U.K. every day. In fact, according to a 2016 estimate by the State Department,…
I have some family members who refuse to wear a mask because they think the benefits of wearing one are a hoax or donning one doesn’t make a difference in the contagion of COVID-19. Some of them whine that the masks are hot or that they make them feel nauseous, or that they cause you to breathe in your own bacteria and therefore are a health threat themselves. These same people are also socializing without…
The first time I stood before a canvas after years of not painting, I panicked. Where do I start? How do I do it? What if I’ve lost my artistic abilities? What if I’ve forgotten how to paint? Riding a bike, I told myself. You never forget, but it might feel wobbly at first until you’ve gone a few rounds around the block. Wobbly but not forgotten. And so what if it doesn’t turn out…
This article first appeared on The Morgan Post’s Facebook page on September 26, 2017. In light of the recent murder of George Floyd, it is being reposted here: It’s a sad commentary about the American psyche to realize that so many people are more concerned about athletes kneeling during the National Anthem than about the reasons why these players have decided to kneel. Some have labeled this action as un-American and an insult to our…
I get the same email every year at this time, just as Christmas is gearing up for its spending season. A Christian – usually a friend or family member – laments about what has become of Christmas and points out all the infractions now levied against this holiest of holidays. For example, it makes many Christians mad that school children are no longer allowed to sing Christmas carols in public school, or that the school…
The latest essential oils craze is leading to an uptick in visits to the vet, as well-meaning pet owners – as well as essential oils salespeople or “experts” – make the leap that what’s good for us is also good for our four-legged friends. The truth is, what benefits us can often be detrimental or even fatal to our furry companions. Dogs, cats, birds, hamsters, rabbits and other pets have a stronger sense of smell…
I googled writer F.G. Rist’s name this morning and was shocked and saddened to discover he has died. I don’t know why I searched for his name or why he’s been on my mind for the past month or so. I don’t know why I didn’t pick up the phone and call him. We met when we were both in the same writing group in Florida and he let me read a book he was…
I’m back from a two-week visit to the place of my birth – England – where I also spent half of my childhood and most of my teen years while my father was in the U.S. Air Force. Perhaps the most impressive part of the whole journey – more than how modern and healthily progressive England is now, and more than the familiar tourist spots, such as the Tower of London, Westminster, Canterbury Cathedral and…
The Valentine’s Day Massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida evoked a memory of when my own daughter attended Hunter B. Andrews School in Hampton, Virginia years ago and a kid brought a gun to school. My recollection was triggered by the haunting news clip of an anguished mother whose daughter was one of the 17 killed when a former student found his way in and mowed down more than two dozen…
Ah, the tricky semicolon, that little comma with the dot on top that many–including newspaper reporters, editors and columnists–are never sure when to use and when to not. I’m always amazed whenever I see a semicolon improperly placed in a sentence when a comma, period or colon will do. The rules are easy, really: a semicolon is used to join two thoughts together that are independent but dependent on each other. One could use a…
The Internet has definitely made it easier for writers. A wealth of information is at a writer’s fingertips and it has provided a way to work from home from anyplace in the country — or even the world! But the Internet has also produced many armchair writers who either think that they understand grammar or believe that grammar rules don’t apply in cyberspace. One grammatical mistake seen in the real world as well as online…
I picked up Susan Cheever’s book, Home Before Dark, years ago because the title intrigued me. A title should be “tough,” as one English professor told me in my college days, and Cheever’s title is certainly that. The book languished on my shelves with many others I have bought over the years, intending to read when I can “find the time.” Then one day I realized that I could run out of time before I…
I didn’t know Ted Kennedy, not personally anyway. But I felt like I did. He was the voice for millions like me — middle class, blue collar background, sometimes uninsured. Much has been written about Ted Kennedy as the symbol of liberalism. He certainly stood for those who have no one to speak for them, and he always went to bat for the underdog. When the GOP made the word “liberal” something dirty and shameful,…
A woman I went to college with works at a PR firm that promotes organic foods. She’s a successful cheerleader for the benefits of healthy eating and the importance of keeping chemicals out of our food source. “Going green,” in fact, has become today’s catch phrase for living healthier and stemming the tide of global warming. Today, organic foods and other green products can be found at all the major supermarkets and household stores, and whole industries…
I haven’t had one minute to post anything to this blog lately … I’ve been tying up a freelance job that doesn’t pay well (what’s new?), and trying to decorate for the holidays since we lost a week with Thanksgiving coming at the end of November this year. In the New Year, I am going to revamp this site. Everything I’ve read says that writing sites should be focused, and mine is all over the…