Deer Lake: Part I

I don’t hunt, but one weekend a year I go on an upland game bird hunting trip. While several of my friends bushwhack through logged over sections of the Flambeau River State Forest in search of ruffed grouse, I stay behind at a lakeshore cabin to fish, paddle, and...

Just Another Thursday Morning

Two mornings a week I write in the atrium of our local nature center. There is free coffee and a view of the marsh. School groups pass through the building most mornings, but they seldom disrupt my solitude for more than a few minutes. The kids get a quick tour of the...

Officially Old

On Saturday I attended a neighbor’s funeral. On Sunday I visited a second neighbor who is getting ready to move into a long-term care facility. Both are older than me, but not by all that much.  Then, on Monday I went for my Medicare-funded annual physical. I received...

Bond Falls

A week ago I visited Bond Falls Scenic Site in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. As beautiful as the falls are, the element of the resource that I find myself thinking about is the somewhat unique boardwalk. I am not sure of the designer’s intentions, but the wooden...

Being Good

A few weeks back I read a New York Times op-ed piece titled “I Don’t Need to Be a ‘Good Person.’ Neither Do You.”* While I agreed with some of the content of the article (it was about not following all social norms), the title itself set me off. There was a time...
Steven Simpson