Five of our six Kindred Spirits Book Club members, September 2026
Our Kindred Spirits
more than just a small book club
we share heart and mind
Each month, the Kindred Spirits Book Club with a six-strong membership meets to discuss our monthly pick. We’re nearing the end of our second full year of reading together, and there’s a deep soul-knit sisterhood that we share. Back in January, our Kindred Spirits readers each chose two books that would take us through 2026, then we mapped out our choices on a calendar and set our meeting dates and locations for each month so that we could guard those calendar days and set ourselves up for attendance success.
It wasn’t until our actual book club meeting day (the last day of our trip to Vogel State Park last week) that I finished this month’s book, The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy, on the drive home (I like to go back and forth between Kindle and Audible). What I think I loved most about waiting until the last minute before the meeting to read the book is that so many of the details were still fresh in my mind for discussion. Generally, I read our selections far ahead of time, and by the time we meet, I’ve read a mix of other books and get the details mixed up. I’ll be more strategic with the timing of my book club selections in the future.
This book is an absolute treasure, by the way. Holly Kennedy is a Canadian author, and she had me in stitches with the kidnapping of a Canadian Goose named Tom Hanks. If you’ve never had the experience of sitting by a campfire reading a book that has you in a full-blown belly laugh while total strangers walk by chuckling from your contagious laughter, please find your way to a bookstore (or get a copy free on Kindle Unlimited) and meet Holly Kennedy in the pages of this novel as you sit by the fire this fall. I’d classify it as a comedic whodunit and go as far as classifying it as a modern Bildungsroman because the main character functions in so many ways as a child but grows in his understanding of the world. As a writer, I appreciate the way the author uses one character’s elaborate t-shirt collection to build character development throughout the novel. This book will change your perspective on those who face life with the deck stacked against them. Visit this link for more information about Holly Kennedy and read the Substack interview. Even in her author photo, you can tell she’s quite a character herself.
Reading by campfire
October’s selection (changed slightly from our calendar) is a choice of this trio: Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth, Remain by Nicholas Sparks and M. Night Shyamalan, or Songteller by Dolly Parton, just to give a fourth-quarter choice of an ironic author collaboration on a romantic ghost story, a timely biography, and a book flying off the shelves and so compelling it pulls you in and won’t turn loose, and then leaves you wanting to read it all over again. Here are our other selections we’ve read this year. We’re always interested to hear what others are reading and how it has broadened minds, opened worlds, and led to new adventures!
Last week, we camped on the side of a mountain where a stream ran behind our campsite and gurgled with all the relaxing sounds of water. Morning temperatures were in the 60s, and the cell phone signals and wifi weakness made streaming movies and scrolling social media all but impossible.
It was absolutely wonderful, too!
Thank goodness I had hard copies of books and downloads on my Kindle. I was more “in the moment” walking dogs, sitting fireside for chats, and being tuned in to my surroundings. I’d learned the previous week how to play solo Mahjong from a new friend named Kristy, a fellow retired teacher one county north, so I practiced making hands on the 2026 card. I’d also thought to bring watercolor paints along in case an unplanned stroke of creativity came over me (it didn’t).
I’m already missing the mountains. It has peace you can breathe, and when the air gets much cooler, there’s a size XXL outdoor fireplace under a covered pavilion with tables for games or lunch, and sturdy, ample-seated rocking chairs that overlook the lake, perfect for reading or sipping coffee. A breeze wafts through the space. We sat and breathed for a while before driving up Blood Mountain to Neel Gap to visit the hiking store.
And at the end of the day, we roasted marshmallows just like when we were kids…..and slept with the windows open in all the clean night air.
Each month, as part of The Stafford Challenge writing group led by Brian Rohr of Portland, Oregon, I look forward to the virtual writing workshops and visits with poets. Earlier this month, Melissa Helton, Director of Literary Arts at the Hindman Settlement School in rural Appalachia, offered a bonus writing workshop in which she shared several of her favorite poets, their poems, and prompts to inspire us to write our own poems. For the next few days, I’ll share the way she presented the information and the way she led attendees to write poetry using mentor poems.
When we arrived in the session, Brian introduced Melissa, who took us on an exploration of four poets by briefly sharing a little about each. Then, she shared a poem that had stuck with her. She read a single poem by each writer and then gave a prompt, inviting us to write our own poems.
One poet was Frank Walker, who wrote the poem Affrilachia on race and cultural identity. After reading this poem aloud, Melissa invited us to write to this prompt: make a list of all the groups with whom you identify, such as churches, hobbyists, sports, regional affiliates, etc. Then, pick two and write about what it’s like in the intersection where two things are an unlikely crosspoint. I thought of the ancient Chinese game of Mahjong, which I have recently begun playing, and how it has now become Americanized and even theme-based.
Each month, as part of The Stafford Challenge writing group led by Brian Rohr of Portland, Oregon, I look forward to the virtual writing workshops and visits with poets. Earlier this month, Melissa Helton, Director of Literary Arts at the Hindman Settlement School in rural Appalachia, offered a bonus writing workshop in which she shared several of her favorite poets, their poems, and prompts to inspire us to write our own poems. For the next few days, I’ll share the way she presented the information and the way she led attendees to write poetry using mentor poems.
When we arrived in the session, Brian introduced Melissa, who took us on an exploration of four poets by briefly sharing a little about each. Then, she shared a poem that had stuck with her. She read a single poem by each writer and then gave a prompt, inviting us to write our own poems.
One poet was Willie Carver, who wrote Requiem for a Dollar Store Christmas Bear. After Melissa read the poem aloud, she gave us a prompt: write about your own precious lost toy.
In retirement, I’ve been dedicating more time to submitting my writing. I recently opened my Submittable page and saw what every writer wants to see: an acceptance among all the declined work.
Dear Art on the Trails Poets-
Congratulations on your acceptance into the 10th Anniversary Art on the Trails Chapbook!
We are thrilled to have both returning and new poets join the ranks of hundreds of poets who have participated in the program.
Today is the gathering along the trail in Massachusetts where attendees will gather to move progressively through this landscape of artist and poet joining to celebrate the visual art pieces and the poems that were selected by the artists to represent each work. When I saw the work of children’s woven moon phases in Selection 16: Phases, created with wire, wood, and yarn by Denise Johnson’s elementary school students who would be featured as part of the 2026 Art on the Trails: Time in Landscape, I thought of the young hands weaving this art, leaving their mark on the universe ~ a timestamp. And my poem was born.
Timestamp Tanka
children weave moonbeams
waxing, waning, wrapped in light
young hands shape vast skies
their marks on the universe
immense timestamps of presence
You can hear me read my poem Timestamp Tanka here (video). Or, hear the audio below.
I would like to encourage my writing friends to submit to next year’s call for poems. It’s revitalizing to be inspired by visual art that prompts writing.
Retirement officially began for me August 1st, and each second and fourth Friday of every month, I’m reflecting on the first year of retirement and what it’s like in this new chapter of life. These have become some of my favorite blog posts of the month because they become a lot like what I believe Sarah Ban Breathnach was driving at in her bookSimple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy. Focusing on the gratitude and appreciation for a new phase of life by looking at all the joy it brings is a balm for the soul. At the beginning of my first week off, I used a green spiral notebook to make a list of all the things I wanted to do — something enjoyable each week, blending in some new hobbies and routines as well. Friends and family who are still working seemed genuinely curious about what I would do with each day, and that’s what gave me the idea to plan and reflect on the course of my days and adventures. I remember my late father’s words, on retirement: You don’t retire FROM something, you retire TO something, and you’ll be busier than you’ve ever been. He was right, but the busy part is optional, like changing out of loungewear and wearing real clothes on most days.
Here are some things I’ve enjoyed in my first official six weeks of retirement. I’m keeping a running list, adding to the previous post each time I pause to reflect.
And picking up where I left off at the end of August, here is how September has begun as I make my way down my list of 100 Things:
19. Re-vamping the Reading Room – I have breathed life back into my reading room and updated it by replacing some shelving and adding a few other personal touches to make it what my husband calls my own unique version of a she-shed. No matter what all is on the list of things I’m doing in retirement, the reading chair is a place I sit each day to adjust my sails. I have a Goodreads personal goal of 60 books this year – – (it’s fitting….it’s the year of 60)…..and I’m trying to get on track to accomplish the goal. By the end of this day, I will have read 31 books, leaving me 10 books behind. I’ve got some reading to do, and Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth wins the prize for September! My older daughter gave me a personalized book count tracker for Mother’s Day to go in my reading room, and it keeps me ever-aware of having the next book ready.
My Book Count Update in the reading room
20. Office Cleanout – Some of the furniture I brought back from Dad’s house on St. Simons had been occupying space without real purpose or function until I could think it all through, and one is an antique desk that my brother convinced me I need – – and he was right. I’m so glad I let him persuade me to bring it home. As I find the places for each treasure, I am rethinking the best location. And in rethinking the best location, I discover that other things need to shift. And as other things need to shift, I’m cleaning up and cleaning out. I’m reminded of the children’s book If You Give a Mouse A Cookie by Laura Numeroff…..the cycles of how things take on a circular pattern. The office was one of those spaces this month, and already it feels like the air is lighter in that room.
21. Monthly Small Postcard Group – I loved the Cascadia Postcard Poetry Fest so much that I’ve already registered for 2027. Meanwhile, I’ve joined a small-scale monthly postcard group with some of my writing friends after I was invited by Denise Krebs of Yucca Valley, California. Here is the link to more information if you are interested – you can email Barbara Robinette and jump into the October round. Some of the postcards I’ve received with poems have literally taken my breath away with their beauty and depth. The artwork of these artists has inspired me to try other forms of art on my own postcards, using theirs as inspiration. I have a lonnnnng way to go, but what joy creativity brings, no matter the lack of artistic talent inside.
22. Watercolor Postcards – I created fabric postcards for Postcard Poetry Fest in August, and I have also picked up the paintbrush for watercolor postcards. My friend Glenda Funk of Chubbuck, Iowa recently shared Alex Kincaid’s Flower of the Month watercolor link, and while I will never be as talented as Glenda, I’m inspired to try the flowers. I also use the postcards that arrive to try painting similar ones, in the same way I used the fabric postcards to try that medium as well.
I’ll have to work to be abstract, and my sun has too many rays….I’ll keep trying
23. Labor Day Camping at F. D. Roosevelt State Park in Pine Mountain, Georgia – It was just too hot to be outside much, so we did some reading and movie watching (Secondhand Lions and Arthur the King). We caught up on the recent episodes of our favorite YouTubers, Mark and Tricia Leach of Keep Your Daydream. Before leaving, we packed up the dogs, threw in our loungewear and a couple of outfits into our new “suitcases” and shopped for groceries on the way, grateful we don’t overthink the camping like we used to do when we strung up lights and used an outdoor rug. And those “suitcases?” They’re the 99 cent TJ Maxx bags that hold as much as a standard airplane carryon and are flexible enough to slide right into a wardrobe cabinet in the camper, without the bulk of a big bag. My friend Christian Jackson shared this trick. So now I have a new set of four seasonal suitcases. Who knew???
Under $1 Seasonal Suitcases from TJ Maxx
24. Dolly Parton Tribute at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee – We love to go to the Grand Ole Opry from time to time, but we’d never been for a tribute or celebration to see the way all the singers come out onstage at the end. I’d seen recordings, but we finally got to be there for a momentous tribute in person. We somehow managed to score two tickets in the nosebleed section, deciding that just being there would still be a treat, even though we’d be watching on a screen with a far-off view of the stage from our high-altitude seats. There’s not a bad seat in the Opry, we’ve found, even though we were nowhere near our favorite Section 17. We took small, high-powered binoculars and sang along, breathing the air of that amazing sold-out evening and sharing stories with people all around us. I got to sit next to an 84 year old from Mississippi who had come to Opryland as a child each year and continued bringing her son throughout his childhood. She’d lost her husband five years ago, and when her son heard about the tribute, he snapped up three tickets and jumped in his plane with his new pilot’s license and flew his wife and mother to see the show. I got to see two shows that night: the tribute to Dolly, and the joy spilling out in tears on the face of that lady next to me. We heard the story that evening from one of the performers that a yellow butterfly had been flitting about the Opry, and I found a video of it here. I like to think Dolly was right there on the stage, too, all evening, soaking in the love everyone had for her.
In Opry Mills Mall, my racecar driving husband found that Cobra he’s been wanting…..
Outside the Grand Ole Opry on the afternoon of the Dolly Parton Tribute
25. September Stafford Challenge Small Group – The first Monday of each month, my small group of Stafford Challenge writers meets to talk about what we’re writing and to catch up. We share what we’re working on, we share prompts for writing, and we enjoy time together from our homes in California, Iowa, Idaho, and Georgia for one glorious hour. This month, we each read a poem we’d written and shared some of our favorite resources, including the Art of Flash Institute, Audrey Gidman’s prompts, Joy Sullivan’s Necessary SaltSubstack, and Ten Poetry Notebooks of Robin Farr. Barb Edler also shared a favorite publication, Moss Piglet.
26. Stafford Challenge Writing Workshop – I attended a workshop led by Melissa Helton of the Hindman Settlement School, and it was fabulous. She shared poems of Appalachia and gave us writing prompts to lead us in the writing of four poems during this time. My favorite was Requiem for a Dollar Store Christmas Bear by Willie Carver, which we read prior to writing our own poems about precious lost childhood toys. Milk (scroll down to page 4 or so) by Diane Fisher led us to write about a time we broke a rule to do the right thing. Soon the Red Wolf by Annie Woodford inspired us to write poems about wildlife or extinct species in our own areas, and Affrilachia by Frank Walker had us writing about the intersection of two unexpected events or circumstances. Melissa Helton is one who is able to reach into a writer and awaken the muse.
27. Mahjongg Group Formation – Now that my former colleague and dear friend Christian Jackson and I have taken lessons in Mahjong, we have branched out into the world of group play. We’re finding our best fit, and we’ve learned that even the best players who are in leagues and tournaments are no more likely to win or lose at the table, because Mahjong is one of those games that requires luck AND skill, and good decision making. We’re fending off cognitive decline, too, according to recent scientific research that shows the cognitive exertion needed for the game keeps the brain cells sharp.
We like to take pictures of our winning Mahjongg racks so we can track our wins and know our favorite neighborhoods and streets on our 2026 National Mahjong League cards
28. Birthday Pedicure with my Sister-In Law – It’s fun going for birthday pedicures during the day and being able to walk right up to a chair without the wait. My sister-in-law Bethany usually schedules our appointments at our favorite nail salon, and we enjoy using the time in neighboring chairs to catch up and get our legs massaged and toes painted. Unfortunately, her best friend’s father died and she was headed out of town to the funeral on her birthday, but not before we sat and chose Plum Wine (her) and Iceland (me) paint colors as colors for our feet to welcome autumn. We missed our bookstore outing to buy each other a birthday book, so I found a couple of gifts from Natural Life and got us matching mugs and socks.
Coffee mugs and socks if not books……all the cozy things
29. Lunch with Friends – From Angelo’s Italian corner restaurant and Bank Street Cafe in downtown Griffin to Mangia on Main in Barnesville, lunch with friends is one of my favorite retirement indulgences. I recently caught up with former colleague Jayne Midura, who gave me a fabulous retirement t-shirt. We talked dog rescue and enjoyed catching up. She is, sadly, in the same place I was during May when I was facing the grief of letting go of an aging dog too tired and sick to carry on. Prayers for Jayne in these coming days. It’s heart wrenching to say goodbye to our fur babies.
Mangia! on Main in Barnesville, Georgia
Over the next two weeks, we’ve planned to take a birthday weekend getaway with Briar’s brother and his wife to North Georgia to stay in a cabin on a creek and have cake, and also camp in Vogel State Park in Blairsville, Georgia. I’ll share a virtual poetry reading of my poem Timestamp Tanka for the Art on the Trail celebration on Sunday as part of the Time in the Landscape series this year in Southborough, Massachusetts. My poem was selected to accompany the work Phases of the Moon for this year’s chapbook, and I couldn’t be more excited!
Throughout the month of September, I’m taking the time to appreciate various forms of art and to be inspired by the creativity and thought that goes into each work – whether it’s a painting, a sketch, a collage postcard, or a structure created in nature along a trail. This week, I’m sharing poems that were inspired by Art on the Trails. Today’s ekphrastic poem is in response to Chelsea Bradway’s Walkin in a Spiderweb that you can read more about here. I chose a Huitian as my form, thinking of the eight legs of a spider and how poetic form can become a part of the overall impression when paired with visual art. A Huitan has eight lines of eight syllables, and this one has a rhyme scheme of abbaacca.
Crystal Chandelier Delight
one spider spins a web of light
to reach into our darkest fears
shares stories told throughout the years
then turns to others to invite
their own connections and insight
together, then, they all reach out
climb far beyond the waterspout
weave crystal chandelier delight
If you’d like to know more about the project, visit this page and watch the videos that were created to show how the shared vision became a reality. This makes me want to create a similar event in my own community. I have a trail in mind – a trail created in memory of a former student whose parents are my former colleagues. I just wonder……could we do the same thing here, inviting artists to create works of art, and poets to write poems inspired by that art, and then walk along a trail in celebration of it all?
I enjoy writing poetry using art as inspiration, and that’s what Art on the Trails invited poets to do for their 10th Annual event in Southborough, Massachusetts. I read about the process and learned that once the artists were selected and their works installed along the trail, organizers invited poets to write ekphrastic poems inspired by the art, and then a poetry juror and the artist would select two poems for each piece of artwork to be published in this year’s chapbook.
That’s the sort of writing that makes me happy, so I decided to accept the invitation. I scrolled through the works of art and selected four that were particularly inspiring. The House of Straw took me back to my favorite childhood storybook days, and The Three Little Pigs came to mind, of course. I wrote a tanka with a variation of a borrowed line from Padraic Colum’s “An Old Woman of the Roads” in response to Pam Bonaguide’s work House of Straw as part of this year’s Time in the Landscape theme.
You can hear the audio clip of my poem here:
This is one of four poems that I submitted for the works of art along the trail, but this one was not selected for publication. I’ll share the poem that the artist and poetry juror selected on Sunday, when the gathering of artists and poets will happen beside each work of trail art in Southborough during a progressive trail walk. Though I will not be able to be there in person for the closing event this year, I’m celebrating in spirit as the week leads up to the closing event on Sunday.
For today, may we all know our own safe spaces. As I see it, there are no safer spaces than the pages of books …..and nature trails with art, poetry, and fireflies.
Art on the Trails is a unique celebration of art in nature and poetry that takes place at the Elaine & Philip Beals Preserve in Southborough, Massachusetts each year, and this will be the ten year anniversary of this event. In the first phase, art is selected by an art judge who announces the 16 winning works for installation along the nature trail, and then in the second phase, two poems are selected by a poetry judge and the artist to go along with each work of art. You can read about the poetry process here. I responded in verse to four of these works of art along the trail this year and submitted them for chapbook publication. I’ll share my poem that is selected to appear in the chapbook on the scheduled day of the event finale on Sunday, September 13. I will be unable to be there in person to read my poem at the progressive walk, but I have shared a video recording with event organizers and will share that here as well. Today, I’m sharing the tanka I wrote in response to Mike Libby’s work Here and There and Now and Then as part of the 2026 Art on the Trails: Time in the Landscape.
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years….
I think of things having an appointed time in the rhythm of life when I consider the verses in Ecclesiastes that are so iconic to seasons and turning.
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
Rhythms and cycles play an important role in balance and harmony of living. Having a rhythm to each day, each week, each month is an important part of life, whether we are working or retired – rhythms are like schedules, habits, and time management. One of the first things I had to do in retirement was create new routines. A new prayer time topped my list, since my prayer chamber used to be my drive in to work and now that I’m not going there anymore, I needed a new designated time that would be consistent. I chose coffee time since there is a rhythm to that regularity and, to some degree, a consistent morning time frame – – and, like coffee, I need prayer at the top of the day. I have discovered in this new routine that I like to see steam rising from my mug as I say prayers, as if what is coming from my lips is swirling in a steam mist upwards to heaven in the quiet, relaxed rhythms of the morning.
HELLO! and HELP!
someone stranded
on a desert island
sends smoke signals
I send prayers
from the porch
fresh from my lips
vapors rising
to heaven
A special thanks to Ramona for hosting this month and inspiring us to think of the rhythms in our spiritual lives.
