AUTHOR
I know there’s more to the holidays than baking, but baking is simply one of those things my family does this time of year. It’s a ritual, a practice, an experience playing out over time that builds layers of memory and meaning. Even if I weren’t baking for holiday gatherings or for gifts, I’d still... Continue Reading →
"I’m trusting that these shared meals are accomplishing, or may yet accomplish, something with good in it. Perhaps, at the very least, they’re a start." - from "Yarns and Yams" Now that we've reached the month when many families in the US gather for Thanksgiving meals, I'm sharing this reflection I wrote earlier in the... Continue Reading →
"This was the fun part. I reminded myself of that. At least, it used to be the fun part. Mazes gave me all the chances I needed to get where I was going." - from "The Fodder Shock Maze" Do you have a favorite part of autumn? I have trouble narrowing it down to one thing, myself. I'm a... Continue Reading →
"It’s the memories of care that strike me in a different, deeper place." - from "On Memories and Acts of Care" I'm pleased to share my recent piece "On Memories and Acts of Care," which appeared in The Polk Street Review 2025, where it was awarded the 2025 Award of Merit (Best in Book) prize. Read on... Continue Reading →
"I’m tempted to call it a mystery the way a person can be gone and yet not be. Perhaps it’s one of those things a person makes peace with never fully figuring out." - "The Book Accident" I'm pleased to share my recent essay The Book Accident," which appeared in the Gals Guide Anthology: Female... Continue Reading →
Sometimes I don’t really know what I’m doing. It’s not always a bad thing. For instance, I’ve had a hankering to bake rye bread lately – real rye bread that smells like yeast and rises on the kitchen counter. I knew nothing about any of it, but I decided a few months ago that a... Continue Reading →
Callie J. Smith 