Category Archives: Beauty

What Life Needs Is a Soundtrack

Posted on May 30, 2021 by aamontgomery

Music inspires and moves me as much as anything in my life. Does life have a soundtrack? I have done my best to prove it can. Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Backyard Nature, Beauty, Music, Op/Ed Thoughts, Wonder | Leave a comment

Gluing Together Our Broken Places

Posted on March 17, 2021 by aamontgomery

I got my first dose of the Covid vaccine today in a drive-through operation at Ft. Sanders Hospital West here in Knoxville, Tennessee. It was a flawless experience except they did not set up a second shot right away on … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Backyard Nature, Beauty, Blooming, Books, Creativity, Family, Freedom, Happiness, Home, Ideas, Op/Ed Thoughts, Women, Wonder, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Down to the Root

Posted on December 31, 2020 by aamontgomery

“I carry you within me, to the very root And though I may blossom,still you will be here.” Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Beauty, Childhood, Courage, Family, Home, Ideas, Knoxville, Music, Op/Ed Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Wisdom That Does Not Cry

Posted on November 29, 2020 by aamontgomery

Wisdom is not a monopoly held only by adults. There is so much we can learn from the deep wisdom of very young children. May we stoop from our greater height, bend our ear close, and listen. Continue reading →

Posted in Backyard Nature, Beauty, Childhood, Family, Freedom, Happiness, Ideas, Joie de Girls, Op/Ed Thoughts | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

IndigoNation

Posted on October 30, 2020 by aamontgomery

Nothing compares with this dye’s ability to capture the blues of nature—a midnight sky, early dawn, or an impression of the sea. It can also define a mood—of melancholy, of mystery in the dark hues, or joy and vitality in lighter … Continue reading →

Posted in Beauty, Courage, Creativity, Dance, Freedom, Happiness, Ideas, Op/Ed Thoughts, The Arts, Wonder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Signs of the Times

Posted on June 29, 2020 by aamontgomery

Wherever I go, I have taken photos of signs and other public communication devices that have grabbed my attention for their brazen wackiness, weird points of view, or kernels of wisdom. Here are my favorites. Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Beauty, Courage, Creativity, Happiness, Ideas, Knoxville, Love, Screen, Style, Travel, Uncategorized, Women | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Man of Value

Posted on August 26, 2019 by aamontgomery

Values over riches, people over things: remembering my father and dealing with the grief. Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Beauty, Blooming, Childhood, Creativity, Dementia, Family, Freedom, Happiness, Ideas, Knoxville, Love, Music, Tribute, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Blooming Out of Season

Posted on January 31, 2019 by aamontgomery

Nearly a decade ago I planted two camellias in container pots just outside the front door of our home. I never thought they would live for long–in containers, mind you– in the mercurial climate of East Tennessee. But my sister, … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Backyard Nature, Beauty, Blooming, Dance, Happiness, Ideas, John Irving, Music, Op/Ed Thoughts, Stage, Women | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Backyard Excavation

Posted on June 27, 2018 by aamontgomery

After 15 years in a house we loved but that had grown too large for us, we decided to downsize and drag fewer possessions through life. We wanted to move to an area (1) we could afford, (2) in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Backyard Nature, Beauty, Family, Freedom, Happiness, Home, Ideas, Knoxville, Love, Music | 8 Comments

Taking Along Our Ghosts

Posted on September 22, 2017 by aamontgomery

When I was young, I saw the 1979 movie “Being There” starring Peter Sellers in his most provocative role as Chance, a simple, uneducated man who grew up and tended the garden on a great estate, and had never been … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiographical, Backyard Nature, Beauty, Courage, Creativity, Freedom, Friends, Ideas, Love, Screen, The Arts, Wonder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment