“Would you like to be queen for a day?” Jack Bailey, the weasel-faced, mustachioed gameshow host, asked his TV viewing audience. Inside the Queen for a Day studio, women applauded vigorously. Seven months pregnant with her fourth child, my mother glanced up from her ironing board and stared wistfully at the television. On that June afternoon in 1963, IContinue reading “Royal Wishes”
Author Archives: dianaestill
Tricks Aren’t for Kids
My earliest memory of my father occurred at age four, when he almost killed me for the second time. Thankfully, I don’t recall the first. When I was two, he poured paint thinner in my Tommee Tippee cup, and I drank it. For that, I held no grudges. That sort of accident could happen toContinue reading “Tricks Aren’t for Kids”
Mother Forgets Her Only Child’s First Birthday
How does a mother forget her only child’s first birthday?
Post Election Stress Relief
Here we are, the morning after Election Day, with no clear idea who will be leading our country for the next four years. We will have to be patient and wait for the outcome, I’m told. But what can we do with our angst in the meantime? Some suggest meditation for stress relief. Here’s whatContinue reading “Post Election Stress Relief”
Hurricane Tests
Three years ago, Mom retired and moved to Florida—lightning capital of the U.S. She wasn’t afraid of storms, and I guess she figured two billion alligators couldn’t be wrong. To further elevate my concerns, she refuses to evacuate for hurricanes. “We’ll be okay,” Mom recently assured me as a major hurricane tracked her direction. “TheContinue reading “Hurricane Tests”
Is it wrong to expose your parents’ flaws?
A discussion about sharing family secrets with readers and why you might need to stop hiding the truth.
What’s in a Photograph?
What’s in a photo image? Have you ever really looked beyond the faces in your family photos to find obscure details? As an author, I’ve spent many hours searching through old pictures and gleaning what I could from them. Photographs document more than individuals’ moods and settings. Every image has a background that discloses addedContinue reading “What’s in a Photograph?”
Diana Estill 