I Had a Mother Who Read to Me By Joyce Ray Wheeler The Reading Mother is the name of the poem from which my title is taken. Written by a little known poet, Strickland Gillilan, the closing words are these: You may have tangible wealth untold… Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold… Richer than […]
Author: Joyce Ray Wheeler
AUTHOR SUNDAY: How much would it cost to see a sunset, if God decided to charge for it?
LILACS AND SUNSETS When my mother, Nancy Ray, was a little girl, there were lilac bushes all around her house. Each house where my parents lived while I was growing up had at least one lilac bush! As mother aged, she developed macular degeneration which seriously affected her vision. As the disease progressed, whenever she […]
AUTHOR SUNDAY: This is funny but so very true – why do we feel we must keep so much?
MOVIN STUFF By Joyce Ray Wheeler It is a truism that moving from one place to another is never an easy thing. But when you’ve lived in the same home for 40 years, and when you are changing from a bigger space to a much smaller space, and when you and your spouse are both […]
Miss Celie was the Medicine Woman in Kentucky
What is in your medicine cabinet? When I was a child, there was no medicine cabinet – just a box with Vicks Salve, rubbing alcohol, Musterole for chest colds, Castor oil, Syrup of Pepsin and maybe cod liver oil. But then there was Miss Celie! I must describe her before you meet her. She was […]
Miraculous story of survival in a tornado
A Night I Can’t Remember by Joyce Ray Wheeler A cyclone is a low pressure area in the atmosphere in which winds spiral inward. All cyclones have two characteristics. The atmosphere pressure is lowest at the center. The winds spiral inward at the center. (Why in the world am I defining cyclones?) There are very few of my Ray family left. My dad was born into a family […]
Do you remember the days when ladies wearing trousers was frowned upon?
The Way We Were by Joyce Ray Wheeler Edmonson County in rural Kentucky where I grew up was known as the poorest county in the state. My father, a bachelor at this time, owned the first car in the county. It was a Ford, and on the day of the purchase, someone showed him how […]
How do you record your life?
SNIPPETS By Joyce Ray Wheeler (b. January 4, 1926- d. November 1 2012) About four years ago I purchased a small journal with a pretty cover in which I began to record my memories. I called my memories “Snippets of Light from My Memory Lane.” The following lines are a direct quote from a favorite […]
July 4th Fireworks in Kentucky were not what you would expect!
Alabama contributing Author, Joyce Ray Wheeler, shares a personal July 4th in Kentucky that turned out quite differently than expected. JULY 4TH FIREWORKS By Joyce Ray Wheeler (b. January 4, 1926- d. November 1, 2012) A tragedy for our tiny Kentucky town occurred at midnight on July 4, 1941, when I was fifteen years old. […]
Do you remember when we played outside until it was dark without a worry?
This story by Alabama Contributing Author, Joyce Ray Wheeler, written in 2012 will bring back memories! GAMES PEOPLE PLAYED by Joyce Ray Wheeler When my ears are bombarded with discussions of Facebook, googling, and twittering; when I read that parents should be aware of the text messaging on their children’s cell phones— then I feel […]
This is why we have cars that parallel park themselves today
See larger image Additional Images: Vinegar of the Four Thieves: Recipes & Curious Tips from the Past (Paperback) By (author): Causey, Donna R List Price: $12.77 New From: $12.77 In Stock Another cute story by Alabama Author, Joyce Ray Wheeler wrote in 2012 NO PARALLEL PARKING By Joyce Ray Wheeler (b. January 4, 1926- d. […]