Posts by Donna Miscolta
The Geologies of Us
When I was in college I took a geology class. I learned about igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks. I learned about formations and their layers of sand and stone. Whatever their scale – the immensity of a cliff or the insignificance of a pebble – I saw them as inert and objective, separate from or…
Read MoreWhat I Found in My Mother’s Closet
The clothes were smashed together, compressed like prom roses in a scrapbook, faded and musty. Slacks, blouses, jackets, sweaters, and skirts crammed two tiers of rods. Hangars bowed from the years of weight. There was something guileless in the arrangement. My sisters and I gathered in the room to dismantle the still life. There were also…
Read MoreHotel Christmas
It was my choice to spend Christmas alone. Early Christmas morning my husband flew to L.A. to spend the holiday with our older daughter Natalie. She had just returned from a trip to the Philippines and getting her jetlagged self onto another plane to come to Seattle was out of the question. I’m heading to L.A.…
Read MoreThe Despair, Thanks, and Hope of November
One evening the week before Thanksgiving, my husband and I were sprawled in our opposite corners of the couch, watching the evening news. “Next week isn’t Thanksgiving, is it?” he asked. “Nah,” I said. But it was. And we had no plans. He decided to try to book a table at a restaurant, but the…
Read More#UnaFamiliaInPhotos Contest Winner 3 and Grand Prize Winner
Congratulations to Patty Enrado, winner of Week 3 of the #UnaFamiliaInPhotos Twitter contest! Her photo of her, her father, her sister, her aunties, uncles, and manongs is captioned “Family get-togethers always involve pig roasting.” It’s a photo that conveys family ties, tradition, and celebration. The runner-up is Michelle Peñaloza who submitted a photo of…
Read More#UNAFAMILIAINPHOTOS – CONTEST WINNER 2
Congratulations to Jennifer Munro, the winner of Week 2 of the #UnaFamiliaInPhotos Twitter contest! Captioned with “I owe everything to my mom,” Jennifer’s entry is a lovely expression of family connection. It also happens to reflect the generational theme of Hola and Goodbye. Jennifer will receive an Hola and Goodbye keepsake and a chance to win a…
Read MoreKaraoke Fail, Karaoke Win
I share several things with my father, deceased now for twenty-three years. One is the daily crossword. My father did it each afternoon when he came home from work. That’s my habit too. Each evening I log in to the New York Times and do the crossword. I can check my stats page to see…
Read More#UnaFamiliaInPhotos – Contest Winner 1
Thanks to those who entered photos in the #UnaFamiliaInPhotos contest on Twitter. A panel of three selected Lana Ayers as the winner for her photo captioned “After dinner disgruntlement.” The winner will receive an Hola and Goodbye keepsake and a chance to win a copy of the book. See other great entries below. A new round…
Read MoreUna Familia in Photos
Hola and Goodbye is a collection of stories about three generations of a family. In anticipation of its November 1 release from Carolina Wren Press, I’m running a contest on Twitter and inviting Twitter users to post a family photo with a caption. The photo above is of some friends of my grandfather, who was also a…
Read MoreRace, Difference, and Discomfort
When our first-born daughter was four, she asked me why she was the only one at her preschool who didn’t have a white mother. I don’t exactly recall my answer to Natalie’s question, posed to me over twenty-five years ago. I’m sure I made some attempt at explaining that my heritage – Filipino and Mexican…
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