Talya Tate Boerner's Blog, page 38

Summer Essentials (according to me)

I woke early, drank my coffee on the porch, and watched the sun begin to glide over the trees. I ate a handful of blueberries and wrote nonsense in my journal. Nonsense with a common theme—summer essentials. Things essential to my summer, either by necessity or joy.

Today is the first day of summer, y’all. So it’s the perfect time to discuss.

Whatyouwannabet many of our summer necessities overlap?

At the top of my list, I wrote a few days at the Lake. Arkansas is blessed with stunning lakes....

Sunday Letter: 06.17.18

Dear Sunday Letter friends,

Summer begins this week! Spring? I hardly knew you. Spring flew by fast as lightning. Don’t you agree? I’m a summer girl, born in July. I love the goodness summertime brings.

Lightning Bugs

Is it my imagination, or do we have more lightning bugs this year? One night last week, I sat in the backyard just after sunset and tried to count lightning bugs. So many! More than we’ve had the last couple of years, I’m sure. I wonder if it has anything to do with our yard?

...

welcome to JURASSIC GARDEN

You know what happens when a spring rain comes nearly every afternoon? Jurassic Garden. That’s what. Plants grow before your eyes, doubling and tripling in size. It seems like a fantastic thing. But come August, things could look primeval.

I’ve already cut back some of my flowers to give them a chance later in the summer.

Papa Creecy, who was a farmer, always said too much rain is better than watching dry crops burn in the field. That was before irrigation wells and pivots. If he were alive...

Sunday Letter: 06.10.18

Dear Sunday Letter Friends,

This will be a short letter. Just so you know.

Unplugged

During the past week, I’ve been unplugged from social media while attending a writer retreat. It’s my sixth year to write at Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum in Piggott, Arkansas. I highly recommend everyone unplug from time to time. (And if you’re a writer, I highly recommend a writer retreat.) Being around other writers, living/breathing/talking about writing—immersion is an important part of staying fresh and in...

Sunday Letter: 06.03.18

Dear Sunday Letter friends,

In case you haven’t noticed, we are already into JUNE. Yikes. June marks the half way point of the year. Those things I wanted to accomplish this year? I need to get my rear in gear. Tomorrow, Lord willing (and the creek don’t rise), we’ll be brining our turkeys for Thanksgiving.

You know I’m right.

To borrow a quote from beloved Dr. Seuss, how did it get so late so soon? I feel like the Earth has been spinning double time.

And p.s. the creek does seem to be risin...

Book Reviews: May 2018

Book Reviews May 2018

This may be the most compelling group of books I’ve read in one month. I listened to The Woman in the Window and Educated via Hoopla (audio books through the library). I rushed out and purchased hardbacks of both The Great Alone and Varina because the authors of these new releases wrote two of my all-time favorite books—The Nightingale and Cold Mountain. Talking to the Trees was an unexpected gem by a local Arkansas author.

Sometimes stories align like constellations in...

What I Didn’t Buy in Alpena, Arkansas

I’d always wanted to explore the vintage shops along Highway 412 in Alpena, Arkansas, yet I’d never stopped because I was on my way somewhere else. A few days ago, I made Alpena my destination. No, of course, I don’t need any stuff. This is about what I didn’t buy yet carried home anyhow.

Setting out to explore without buying is a different sort of adventure. I go with the intention of remembering.

Inspiration lives in the most unexpected places. There’s a treasure trove inside musty shops f...

Sunday Letter: 05.27.18

Dear Sunday Letter friends,

Yippee.

School’s Out!

Is there anything more exciting than the last day of school? When I was a kid, being out of school for summer brought a magical sort of excitement. Today, even though I’m no longer a schoolgirl, and my kids have left the nest, I still feel the same way. Memorial Day weekend kicks off the celebration.

A few days ago, I saw the cutest boy riding his bicycle in the neighborhood. He exuded that “school’s out” joyfulness not only in the way he pe...

Gracie Lee on Arts & Letters!

THIS FRIDAY (May 25 at 7:00 p.m. CST), the show I taped in January in Little Rock goes LIVE on NPR’s Arts & Letters.

That’s tomorrow, y’all!

This is such a huge thing for me. And I’d love for you to listen. After all, YOU helped make this happen by being so supporting of The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee. You’ve told your friends about the book, invited me to your book clubs, written Amazon & Goodreads reviews, and basically inspired me to keep plugging away at this writing thing.

Arts...

Sunday Letter: 05.20.18

Dear Sunday Letter friends,

I’ve heard from lots of you over the past week. Thank you for all the messages and emails saying you look forward to reading my Sunday Letter. Routine can be a good thing. Right? Something to anticipate and anchor the week ahead. I know I’m sort of putting words in your mouth now.