December 2019

The Chainsaw Saga By Clyde Edgerton I am groggy (after a nap) when, chainsaw in hand, I head for the small, dead tree in the yard adjoining our yard. My neighbor has asked me to cut it down — and [...]

Mama’s House Somewhere down the dirt road of memory By Bill Thompson We sold Mama’s house a little while back, just before she died. We realized that she wasn’t coming back from the nursing home [...]

The spirit of the holidays begins in the kitchen. Cheese biscuits, gingerbread and garnet-hued poached pears are three simple yet festive ways to celebrate By  Jane Lear  “The harried modern [...]

The Aurora Life in the South suits me just fine — warm winters, slow speech, kudzu, and iced tea. But just once I want to stand in the frigid dark, wrapped in a fur-lined parka, mukluks on my [...]

to whom it may concern By Virginia Holman Whose idea was it to go caroling down our small country road? Most likely, it was suggested by my wise and kind aunt, who understood the need for [...]

Fight the Good Fight and Keep the Faith The political saga of a father and son By D.G. Martin Anyone who wants to master North Carolina political history must try to understand how Kerr Scott, [...]

Bringing Back The Lights After years of going dark and battling ocean storms, the Christmas lights of Harker’s Island are back — “anchoring” a beloved community tradition By Susan Ladd  •  [...]

Hope Lives A unique partnership between two Cape Fear area churches and New Hanover Regional Medical Center provides safe places for the homeless to rest and recuperate after hospitalization By [...]

December is a treasure trove of fragrance and memory. One whiff of cinnamon, for instance, and I’m back in Grammy’s kitchen, watching the birds through the sunny window as cinnamon sticks simmer [...]

Canada Goose As days shorten, the flock grows By Susan Campbell That unmistakable honk overhead — we have just about all heard it lately: the tell-tale sign of fall. The aggregations ahead of [...]