Elin Stebbins Waldal

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Empty Bowls

Nov 8, 2015 By elinwaldal 3 Comments

Too old to climb stairs, mornings begin with a welcome sigh of relief from our dog, Chinook; she sleeps at the base of them on her bed, and although I pretend her eager tail wag is a euphoric response to my arrival downstairs, the truth is, she is all about her empty bowls. The first order […]

Filed Under: Living Tagged With: Dogs, Love

The Act of Noticing

Jan 16, 2015 By elinwaldal 20 Comments

For years I had been in the habit of carrying a notebook, a catch-all where I collected bits and pieces of things that interested me — quotes, observations, facts — all notations that begged me to return to them. Then I read The Memoir Project, A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life, written by Marion Roach […]

Filed Under: On being a parent Tagged With: life observed, Love, mother and son, The Act of Noticing, Writing

Home is My Church

Dec 3, 2014 By elinwaldal 25 Comments

Reflection: something that shows the effect, existence, or character of something else.”–Merriam Webster Dictionary By the time I was born, my family had all but given up church. My memories of going are more like snapshots, the first of which is of leaving. It was winter in Connecticut. I was probably three years old and […]

Filed Under: Childhood Memories, NaBloPoMo Dec 14 Tagged With: Christmas, church, Family, Home, Love, memories

Grandma’s Sweet Rolls

Nov 27, 2014 By elinwaldal 7 Comments

Crouched down I retrieved the binder which is beyond bursting with recipes—some clipped from newspaper, some from magazines, while others were passed on. I knew what I was looking for when I flipped the tab marked “BREADS” to the side. Her long-hand penmanship came into view — Grandma’s Sweet Rolls — involuntarily I sat on […]

Filed Under: Memories, NaBloPoMo Nov 14 Tagged With: Caregiving, cooking, End of Life Care, Grandma, Love, NaBloPoMo14, sweet rolls

Things to Come

Nov 22, 2014 By elinwaldal 20 Comments

On Thursday morning Jimmy and I brought our youngest daughter to the airport, she was headed off to Orlando to play lacrosse. Although she had traveled alone a number of times to compete, this time felt different. I could not help but feel aware of things to come, it was as if the future — our […]

Filed Under: Empty Nest, NaBloPoMo Nov 14 Tagged With: Empty nest, Love, Mother, Teenagers

Losing Ellie

Nov 17, 2014 By elinwaldal 44 Comments

Losing Ellie, my husband’s mother, was one of the most difficult things our family has experienced. Nothing, and I mean nothing, could have prepared us for her unexpected loss of life. What I have found is emotions stay. They don’t remain at the surface the way dried blood does as a scab to the skin. No, emotional wounds are different. All that […]

Filed Under: Death of a Parent, Grief, NaBloPoMo Nov 14 Tagged With: car accident, Death of a loved one, Death of Mother, Grief, Love, Mother

A Story of Rescue

Nov 11, 2014 By elinwaldal 7 Comments

In 2009, The New York Times, featured a collection of interviews, in each the subjects story was paired with photographs–all lovely vignettes of the individuals New York life–the Times called it, One IN 8 MILLION. So many of the stories were just remarkable,  “ordinary people people telling extraordinary stories,” but one in particular stayed with me. When it comes […]

Filed Under: Healing from Trauma, NaBloPoMo Nov 14 Tagged With: Abandoned Animals, Animals, Love, One IN 8 MILLION NYT, Rescue

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