Sticks and Stones Are the Easy Part

Sticks and Stones is collection of poetry and prose.

It is dedicated to those who are kind to children.

This book was nothing I set out to do.
I wrote a couple of poems about my father
and then there was no stopping the memories
that welled up in a month's time.

They were like those hot steam bubbles
around Yellowstone's Old Faithful.
And like those bubbles, some memories
had more steam than others,
but they all wanted acknowledgment.

Whether these are poems or not is unimportant.
This is a compilation of vignettes
of one family in one century,
their obstacles, their courage, their simple joys,
and their passage from one stage to the next.

What did I learn from this writing?
I learned how fresh are the memories
of over seventy years,
how raw the hurts,
how joyful the comfort given.

With utmost sincerity I urge everyone
to be kind to children.
As this writing demonstrates,
nothing goes away.

Sticks and stones are the easy part.