Long Hollow

Where seeds of thought have room to grow

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Realtor, writer, blogger in Austin, TX

Category: Inspiration and Heroes

  • 2023 Part 1 – “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”

      "…it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair." ~ Charles Dickens If ever there was a year of ups and downs, it was 2023. We lost too many loved ones, and yet also experienced amazing new adventures and…

  • 10 Things I Learned from Father Raj

        Our small parish had the same priest for about the first 20 years that we lived here. Father Joe founded the church, first holding Mass at a campground on Lake Travis. By the time he retired (in his 80's) the current church had been built, expanded, and a parish activity center built. Also,…

  • This is where it starts (thoughts on Memorial Day)

    This is a repost originally published on my other blog almost 5 years ago. I was thinking about it this morning and felt it was a fitting tribute to those we are remembering on Memorial Day. I'm proud to say this young Airman is now my son-in-law.    I was honored to attend the Air…

  • The Home of the Brave

    I was lucky to be a child of the late '70's, which means none of my contemporaries had to serve during time of war or in a war zone. While many of them volunteered, and there is never any guarantee that a war won't break out on any given day, their service was focused on…

  • Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and a bunch of sweet!s

        The sky put on a grand finale sunset outside my window as I started reflecting on this past year.  However, it doesn't take a lot of reflection to know that 2018 will go down in history as one of my favorite years. It's the year I became a grandmother!    Watching Little C…

  • And the lessons continue… (Happy birthday, Mama!)

      It didn't hit me until today, but I'm sure my mom must have been a bit nervous as the birth of my first child drew close. After all… I had been the baby of our family… and relished the role As a little girl, I preferred stuffed animals to baby dolls. My only two…

  • “Freedom is never free.” ~ Anonymous

      In gratitude to all of you who have served, or who continue to serve, here's my annual tribute about my own favorite veterans. All too often we take your service and sacrifices for granted. Thanks for serving anyway.    "Lord, if your people need me, I will not refuse the work. Your will be…

  • Before we go any farther into November…

      … let's take a step back to October. I need to finish a post I started weeks ago, because October is one of my favorite months, for lots of reasons…  Although we met in September, it was in October that we knew we were in love.      Aren't we cute? Sigh. That's probably…

  • “Is, then, September come so soon?”

        Is, then, September come so soon?Full time doth summer ne'er abide?While yet it seems but summer's noon,We're floating down the autumn tide. ~Eunice E. Comstock, The Atlantic Monthly, October 1873   Is it just me, or did Summer just set a new record for "Fastest Season Ever"?  Temperatures are still climbing to 100 degrees…

  • A Daughter…a Gift of Love

      A daughter is a gift of love. ~Author unknown My daughter had a birthday recently. When pressed, she allowed me to have a small family gathering, for my benefit. She told me it should be my celebration, since I'm the one who did all the work that day.  That's a perfect example of the…