December 11, 2025

This is my Grandma Mary. Mary Frances Reid Agnew. Her parents were Charles Reid and Cora Belle Owens. She was born in southern Indiana and lived in Indiana her whole life. Her birthdate was Dec. 10, 1899. This means that she turned 1 year old on Dec.10, 1900, at the turn of the century, and 3 weeks later the world went into the year 1901. So she was 1 year old in 1901, and that went on her whole life. She was 65 in 1965, etc. Mary was quite the character, a fireball of a personality. She loved telling stories and loved little babies. She got married at age 16 to my grandpa John Wesley Agnew. They named their first born “John Thomas”, my father. They had one more child, a girl, my Aunt Margaret Ruth. The night before she passed, she was in her room at a nursing care facility laughing and talking. The nurses asked her, “Who are you talking to, Mary?” She said, “Oh I’m talking to my friends. I will see them tomorrow.”

Posted in Family, family history | Leave a Comment »

End of semester

November 24, 2025

This semester,

One student’s grandmother died,

another had an untimely family death,

one wants to be a counselor for LGBTQ+ teens

and was encouraged to find research

on her gender identity,

Another told me his father lost a Federal job

and could no longer pay his tuition,

This semester they wrote paragraphs with pen in hand,

in order to find their own voice,

and not use AI as an automatic knee jerk reflex,

and I taught double negatives, run-on sentences and fragments, because they are juniors and seniors and had not learned it,

and they are not stupid,

and I told them they had to be bilingual

and use the King’s English in a job interview,

one left school because her boyfriend beat her up,

she returned in 3 weeks and got a B.

This semester, no one failed,

everyone took their final exam,

4 earned an A,

3 earned a B,

2 earned a C,

no one plagiarized an assignment,

and I call that a success.

This morning I will turn in grades,

and I feel sad that life is so hard,

that we all experience loss and hardship

at the worst of times,

that some won’t graduate,

that some didn’t care enough to do their assignments

and come to class.

But I embrace all life as it is

and give thanks to God

for His unfailing love.

This morning I am thankful for those who finished,

for those who will graduate,

for those who persisted through it all

to do their best,

and I am thankful

that I found

my calling.

cfblack, 11-24-25

Posted in poetry, Sociology, teaching | Leave a Comment »

Fly, my daughter

November 23, 2025

Fly, my spirit daughter,

fly to the heights of heaven,

Fly throughout God’s universe,

Converse with other souls of light,

Use your powers to help us here,

We are the feeble ones.

There are things we do not understand,

Worlds we cannot see,

You now fly with the ancestors,

Blessed be, blessed be.

cfblack, 11-23-25

Posted in Family, grief, love | Leave a Comment »

ancestor from Wales

November 14, 2025

An ancestor of mine born in Bala, Wales, Owen Owens 1746-1861, became an ordained Baptist minister in Washington County, Kentucky, but he & his wife left the church due to their refusal to participate in slavery. (Refusal of their church to not participate in slavery “after much discussion”)

His traits mentioned were being of good morals, an “uncommonly small man” with a noble soul. He is my 5th great-grandfather, ancestor to Cora Belle Owens, my great-grandmother who married Alexander Reid in southern Indiana.

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We are not the same

November 7, 2025

I write things down that I’ve done each day,
so that I know
I accomplished something.
Season 5, Only Murders in the Building,
Martin Short’s narcissism and
Steve Martin’s cooky-ness
make me laugh.
2-mile walk,
note houses for sale,
heat up tuna casserole,
very little reading,
avoided composing final reviews,
felt overwhelmed with life

laid down, twice today,
closing my eyes, I think of you,
and cry,
while my husband watches loud TV shows on his laptop
in the living room,
for the entire day.

cfblack 11-7-25

Posted in grief | Leave a Comment »

how are you doing?

October 29, 2025

People ask us how we’re doing.

Honest answer, we’re struggling,

all of us, every day, every minute, in every way.

We miss you, we love you,

it is natural to grieve.

Your parents, your sister, your brothers, your kids,

your goddaughter, your cousins,

your coworkers and friends.

We all struggle every day,

but we’re okay. We have to be.

You filled this world with so much love,

You called your boys to check on them,

I turn to God,

I feel your spirit,

You are with us every day,

We whisper to you

but won’t hear back,

and yet, you are there,

you are everywhere.

You are in everything we do,

Every day we send our love to you.

cfblack, 10-29-25

Jasmine age 16, photography class

Posted in Family, grief | Leave a Comment »

my vote

October 27, 2025

Everybody wants to know, how will I vote?

Democrats write me, Republicans too,

they send surveys I am afraid to answer.

Is this survey for real, or are they trolling?

Every mailing I get, it asks for money.

I grew up being told, my vote is my business.

I vote as a citizen, make my choices in private,

vote on issues that mean the most to me.

It’s none of your business how I plan to vote.

If elections were honest and votes were legit,

you’ll know after I vote, who I voted for.

And no, I have no money for your campaign,

because, have you bought groceries lately?

have you tried to buy steak? LOL LOL.

Lucky to buy hamburger. Hot dogs, maybe.

Maybe a can of soup with too much salt.

Have you looked at what a house costs to rent??

No, I can’t send $$ to your campaign,

you’ll have to figure that out for yourself.

Save your money and don’t ask for mine.

Call me on the phone, ask me, how was my day?

What are the issues you’re dealing with?

How can I brighten your day today?

I will vote while I still can, and hope that it counts.

But my vote is my business,

I hope for change.

cfblack, 10-27-25

Posted in hard times, the times we live in, various personal musings | Leave a Comment »

Cheese and crackers

October 26, 2025

My Dutch grandma served cheese and crackers,

chocolate candy with vanilla creme,

green and white mints, melted in your mouth,

windmill cookies, and 7-up.

She lived through the Great depression,

sat at her foot pedal sewing machine,

revised used clothes from someone else

to fit her own children,

went to church on Sunday,

and always had a smile.

Told us of times Grandpa couldn’t find work

and “had to go work for the WPA”,

They built sidewalks and did other jobs

after the first world war,

She loved hosting friends and family,

the adults talked for what seemed like hours,

until she winked and said with a smile,

“Let’s have a little lunch.”

Children then ran into the kitchen,

were treated like Kings and Queens,

climbed up on chairs awaiting them,

felt the love in their family,

watched her pour the magic bubbly,

ate cheese and crackers, and candy.

This is where we heard stories,

learned some family history,

but what I most remember

is my Grandma’s cheery laughter,

always happily hosting,

sharing what they had.

cfblack, 10-26-25

Posted in childhood, Family, hard times, love | Leave a Comment »

green grasshopper

October 20, 2025

Yesterday, on the windshield of your car,

our car, the one we inherited from you,

a tiny grasshopper appeared,

light green baby, sitting there,

as I drove to the store.

This has become our sign,

a symbol of life between us.

I would see them in your yard,

after you passed,

not something we see every day anymore,

like I used to see them as a kid.

A sign of life, a symbol, and I like to think,

from you.

It is you saying, “Care for the earth,

all signs of life, everywhere.

Each life is precious, even grasshoppers,

care for all the living things.”

A friend of mine wrote a poem for you,

‘I see you galavanting through galaxies,

a grasshopper clinging … to your hand…

She dwells with the stars, tethered to God,

with an emerald green grasshopper

strapped by her side.’

I whisper to you in the car,

“I love you, I miss you.”

I see you too, green grasshopper,

all life is connected,

ours, with tiny living things,

and other worlds beyond.

cfblack, 10-20-25

Posted in Family, gratitude, grief, love, spirit world | Leave a Comment »

Carry you with us

October 12, 2025

There’s just no replacing you,

You are with us, always,

in spirit, memory, laughter, hopes.

It is you as a toddler,

you as a child,

teenager, pregnant, young mom and wife.

You raising your boys,

never giving up hope that

they will be just who they are, today,

your faith, your caring,

your forever love,

taking in 2 stepdaughters

as your own,

staying in touch with them

after divorce.

One of them now lives in Georgia,

close to where you were,

how ironic is that? But that’s how life goes.

You in your 40s, finally happy,

secure in yourself and who you are,

I miss you daughter, I miss you here,

your dad and I cope as best we can.

We move through days, one after the other,

carry you with us as we go,

Carry you always, in our hearts,

carry you with us, as we go.

cfblack, 10-10-25

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