About Me

I was raised on Cow Turd Alley in Vesper, New York. You think I’m kidding, don’t you? Vesper is five miles out of town from Tully, which is about 35 miles south of Syracuse. This tells you that it is pretty much out in the middle of a hayfield somewhere. I spent my youth walking the dirt roads, creek beds, hard wood forests and meadows in that area.  I’d slip out after breakfast and not return until supper. The trees, the wildflowers and all the animals were my friends.

There were seven of us living in a tiny house not more than 900 sq.ft. I shared a room with my two sisters and escaping into nature was my sanctuary. All my life I have treasured my moments in the wild; my family refers to me as Ranger Rick. It’s ironic that I now live in a little cabin, in Montana, about the same size as the one where I spent my first childhood. This is my second childhood.

I began gardening at an early age. Plants have been the focus of my life’s work. I married into a third generation garden center and landscape business and was actively involved in every aspect for over 20 years. When that dissolved, I went to Cornell University to become an agriculture teacher. While there, I had the good fortune of assisting with the Global Seminar series, first as an aid and then as a co-teacher. This series connected students and faculty from around the world in weekly classes and debates on global issues. I had many opportunities for international travel. 

 

My research has been on people-plant relationships and public school gardening. I received my Ph.D. and M.S. from Cornell in Education and Social Policy focusing on agriculture. My passion is to convey to people how beneficial being around nature and plants is to the human psyche.

I have been writing stories for decades, each centered on characters from nature or the animals around me. I would call myself spiritual more than religious. I see the hand of God/Creator/Higher Power in all things. We are given signs all the time to help ease our pain as we travel our paths but sometimes we need someone to point them out.  I hope my stories help you in that way. It is my intention to reach out and present any wisdom a crone of my age can offer.  It is comforting to know we are never really alone; that others have experienced similar trials and learned and grew from them. It is my wish to create a blog so that anyone can  add their thoughts to these universal issues and situations. Be my guest, enjoy my snippets, feel free to add your thoughts.