by Kevin Banet | Jul 10, 2025 | Generations, Senior stories
More Than Maple Leaves High up on a ladder, I had just pulled the last stubborn clump of oak leaves from Mrs. Maple’s gutter when I heard her voice call out from below. “Since you’re finished, why don’t you come down and have some milk and cookies?” she offered,...
by Kevin Banet | Jul 9, 2025 | Family, History, Reminisce
A Legacy from the Horse and Buggy Days My cousin Vicki once said something that captured the awe we all feel when we talk about our family’s history: “Granny Eva was alive when horses were still on the street.” She said it almost in disbelief—as if the world that...
by Kevin Banet | Jul 8, 2025 | nursing homes, Reminisce, Senior stories
Rosella had never married, and I was one of the few people in her life “Are you there, Kevin? Are you listening?” Her voice came through the phone—high-pitched, thin, and slightly frantic. “I’m here, Rosella. I’m listening,” I replied, a bit embarrassed, cradling the...
by Kevin Banet | Jul 7, 2025 | Reminisce, Senior stories
There’s a big, heavy old monkey wrench in my toolbox—rusted at the jaw, its handle darkened from years of use. We call it “Uncle Pete’s wrench.” It doesn’t get much action anymore. I keep that wrench not for its function, but for its memory. When I was a kid, we...
by Kevin Banet | Jul 4, 2025 | History, Holidays
Old age didn’t stop Benjamin Franklin. (AI image) In the movie National Treasure, treasure-seeker Nicholas Cage discovers a pair of antique spectacles with multiple lenses—clearly designed, we’re told, by Benjamin Franklin. When used to peer at the back of the...