The Grace of Ordinary Days

Absolutely a book for all occassion. The writings and photography is meditative and exciting. It's a must get for self and gift-giving.

I've given copies of this book to friends who open it randomly, read one poem, then another, look up with a deep smile, and hold the book as if holding a treasure. Kay's poems and Bernie's expressive and sensitive photography go directly to the heart. They both speak the language of What is True.

In midlife, mother Kay and son Bernie, 50-ish, found a way to pass a gift on to all of us. Kay started writing poetry and Bernie became a professional photographer; a major career shift for him, but a dream come true. When the book became a reality, Kay was in her 80s. Her poetry, about life's transitions for her and her children, is powerful, passionate, pithy ... and oh so reflective. You know she has hit your emotional button when you find yourself nodding or saying, hmmmmm. She writes beautifully of forgiveness, hope, dreams and reality. So many of the poems touched my heart. One of my favorites is about waiting for her son to come home -- after he had been out way past curfew. As a writer and editor, my favorite is "In My House of Words," where she describes what nouns, verbs and other parts of speech do. Kay tells us that after midnight they tightly join hands and make lovely lonely sounds in the dark. What an image of the value and power of words! Bernie's amazing photographs of flowers are close, close-ups. You hardly realize -- until you dwell on the photo, that it is the fold of a rose, the curled-up dying iris, or the center of an orchid. This merging of words and photographs gives the reader "nothing ordinary," in The Grace of Ordinary Days -- the author's invitation to celebrate life's journey. Kay died before Bernie could have the book published. He found the closeness he and his father shared while working together to birth Kay's legacy a gift beyond words. Armchair Interviews says The Grace of Ordinary Days is a wonderful gift for you or someone who loves the beauty of the written word -- and the phenomena of God's flowers.