Tag: writing

• More Questions than Answers

  I did it. I really did it. This essay marks the finish line, the accomplishment of a goal, the completion of a commitment I made one year ago on New Year’s Eve, 2014, when I, with the help of my two tech-savvy and very creative daughters, developed a website on Word Press—Cajun Girl in a…

  michardillo

  December 27, 2015

  Essay

  ceramics, commitment, essays, hobbies, kiln, Piano Baby, Santa, teaching, writing

• Drowning, But Don’t Save Me — Yet

  At the annual Back to School Night last week I introduced myself to the parents of my 7th graders with my usual background information: “This is my 9th year teaching and my 9th year at this school. I came to education as a second career after twenty years in the legal field. After leaving my…

  michardillo

  September 20, 2015

  Essay

  back to school, Belgium, creativity, English, grading, international school, language arts, library, middle school, reading, real estate, retired, retirement, St. John’s International School, teaching, theatre, Waterloo, writing

• Learning the “Write” Way

  On September 12, 2015, my father would have been 85 years old. On September 8, it will be four months since he passed away. I miss him. I think of him all the time, just like I think of my mother all the time and it has been eight long years since I lost her.…

  michardillo

  September 6, 2015

  Essay

  anthologies, CoCo Harris, essays, grief, Julia Child, Julie Powell, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, personal narratives, Reflections, Telling Our Stories Press, writer, writing

• Sing It, Alice Cooper!

  In the inimitable words of Alice Cooper, “School’s out for summer!” The end of the school year is a glorious thing for students. The countdown begins somewhere mid-4th quarter. Teachers are ready, too, and many post the countdown on their white boards, both as encouragement for their students to hang in there and finish strong,…

  michardillo

  June 15, 2015

  Essay

  alice cooper, Karen Cushman, library, medieval times, middle ages, middle school, school, summer break, teaching, vacation, writing

• Writing to Winston

  As I write this on my laptop, I am listening to George Winston’s album December via Spotify. While not actually December, it is the dead of winter here in the northeast, a brisk and cold 39°, on a cloudy Saturday afternoon. The first time I heard George Winston was back in the mid-80’s, at a…

  michardillo

  January 25, 2015

  Essay

  December, George Winston, IBM Selectric, writing