Author Archives: SamMooneyham

Last Friday marked what would have been Don Williams’ 83rd birthday. Hands down my favorite country musician, Don Williams’ voice has woven itself through most every memory of my childhood. His songs, both the ones he penned as well as those of others he agreed to perform, consistently spoke of enduring love, faith, and honestContinue reading “Good Old Boys Like Don”

Our neighbor Bill lavishes a level of focus and care on his postage stamp yard one usually associates with Buddhist monks and their bonsai trees. Even during the time he was receiving chemotherapy treatment we could see Bill walking slowly but purposefully, inspecting everything to make sure nothing had suffered in his absence. Not surprisingly,Continue reading “No Dogs Allowed! (Except Mine)”

“The thing about kids,” you hear parents huddled in a commiserating circle say, “is they don’t come with a user’s manual.” This comment is met with chuckles and a what-are-ya-gonna-do? head shake and shoulder shrug, usually after the offspring of one has made a decision deemed unwise by their elders. As just such an offspringContinue reading “The Best Inheritance”

In my family a popular parable with multiple applications over the years is the story of my oldest niece, at the time just a toddler, carrying my newborn nephew up a flight of stairs against her mother’s unambiguous order to leave him be. My sister had hoped to quickly vacuum the upstairs of their homeContinue reading “In Defense of Good Intentions”

A K9 officer was shot and killed in the line of duty a few miles from where I live two days ago. Jinx, a three-year-old Belgian Malinois, had only just begun his service to our community when he was gunned down attempting to subdue a suspect who was brandishing a gun despite repeated commands byContinue reading “To Serve at Whatever Cost”

Standing in the canned vegetables aisle at the supermarket last week, my search for sweet pickle relish was interrupted by the high decibel, panicked shriek of “Mommm!!!” from who knows where in the store. Of the four other women sharing the space with me, the heads of three jerked up in alarm before returning toContinue reading “The Child is Father of the Man”

No one doesn’t love romance, right? Even in our dark nights of the soul when we’re reeling from painful experiences in that department, isn’t there still a hope that strong, enduring love is out there in the world, that maybe we’ll one day be blessed to find and create our own happily ever after? InContinue reading “Walking Home”

At least seven times in my life I have committed crimes against my hair that violated the Geneva Conventions. Despite abundant evidence that should have discouraged me, every few years I’d get the notion to give bangs a try. No matter the cowlick that has been front and center on my curly head my entireContinue reading “Curtain Bangs, String Bikinis, and Opened Windows”

A few weeks ago as I was sitting in traffic, scrolling through radio stations, I caught an artist spotlight featuring Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young and paused there to listen to a few songs. I can never hear “Teach Your Children” without remembering my dad sitting on the edge of the couch strumming his guitarContinue reading “Teach Your Children”

In the 1970s while my sister eagerly anticipated her issues of Tiger Beat and taped the centerfold posters of Leif Garrett and Shaun Cassidy to her walls, I was glued to episodes of Gentle Ben and obsessively reading my tattered copy of The Black Stallion. I believe I skipped over some “normal” phase of lifeContinue reading “My Heroes Have Always Been Canines”