Melissa Westemeier

It's a sultry 76 degrees this morning and I started a fire in our backyard pit. (Disclosure: I hate fires. When people are all, "Hey,...

Smörgåsbord is one of those Swedish words that sounds suggestive of its meaning. Smörgåsbord has a rich and satisfying sound, filling the...

Acts of kindness that I still reflect on: When I was sixteen I was riding my bike to the public library on a very rainy day. Somehow (I...

Monday started a new term and the first writing assignment I give my students involves crafting some flash nonfiction. I guide them...

I haven't been to the ocean in two years until this past week. For me that's a big deal. There's something specifically restorative about...

For just over five years we have had the sweetest cat. He turned up one summer evening in our back yard. The boys were playing outside...

For years I've enjoyed the pleasures of a nature center up the road from my house. Purdy offers plenty of trails with hills, prairie and...

I keep thinking of this song by Semisonic called "Closing Time" with the lyrics "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's...

Winter doesn't really reach its stride until January, so 31 days of cold and snow feels new and fresh. February is short, plus I have a...

We've hit what I refer to as "Deep Winter." February smacks us full in the face with bitter cold and only the unseasoned and stupid...

I ran some errands yesterday and as I drove around I was treated to a lot of Christmas decorations propped outside people's houses. Some...

A couple of bird feeders hang outside my window and flocks of visitors arrive all day long. Even on this dreary winter day, sparrows,...

The report from Room 209: This first week of the school year was ... really different. My students' desks are arranged in rows per CDC...

I'm different than I was yesterday. Every day I learn new information or have a new experience, and my knowledge expands and my...

This strange summer I have worn down a path moving through my daily routine. Kitchen to make coffee. Library to write. Garden to pull...

This quiet summer means I get to swim nearly every day. In order, my strokes of preference are: back stroke (my best and fastest), breast...

Last summer an idea for a story squeaked around the edges of my brain and I articulated it to my writing group. "Possibly my next book...

Long-time followers and friends know about Mr. D's strange proclivity for acquiring critters. He's responsible for one of our stray cats...

It's human nature to pull in tighter when we feel fear. Instinct makes us curl in to protect ourselves from a punch, we wrap ourselves...

This pandemic has revealed a few sobering truths to me. That's bound to happen when isolated with your own thoughts, there's no...