by Mary McKSchmidt | Sep 14, 2026 | A Bench and a Tree, 2026
“Rose.” It was barely a whisper. More like a gentle breeze stirring the spirea on a summer afternoon. The nearby caregiver looked up, surprised. Tears edged the corners of her eyes as she watched the older woman timidly touch the rose’s velvety petal. It was the...
by Mary McKSchmidt | Sep 7, 2026 | 2026, A Bench and a Tree
Four of us gathered in the sweltering heat at the shaded picnic table alongside the Day Use Trail at Ottawa Sands County Park in July. The meeting was prompted by comments from a book club discussion of Mother’s and my book, Miracle Within Small...
by Mary McKSchmidt | Jul 6, 2026 | 2026, A Bench and a Tree, Blog Post, Poetry
a long dash skipper a place of nourishment ninebark’s offering It was hot. And still I walked. Looking for butterflies. Smelling the sweet fragrances of summer. Listening to birdsong. Exercising—for walking is now my preferred form of exercise. JB McCombs, co-leader...
by Mary McKSchmidt | Jun 29, 2026 | Poetry, 2026, A Bench and a Tree
Like how the Red Admiral leans into the creamy white flowersof the ninebark, its tube-like proboscisprobing deep into the blossomto sip the sweetness, like howthe butterfly’s spindly legscan’t help but brush against the clusters of stamen emanating from...
by Mary McKSchmidt | Jun 22, 2026 | 2026, A Bench and a Tree, Blog Post
The quest to provide shaded benches in public spaces for the people of Michigan is not easy.And yet, after walking with Mother the last eleven years of her life, presenting to thirteen audiences throughout west Michigan, meeting with book clubs, and hearing from...
by Mary McKSchmidt | Jun 15, 2026 | A Bench and a Tree, 2026
Mother and I discovered the bench while on an adventure to the Heinz Walkway in 2020. Shaded by seven “immense cottonwood trees” alongside Lake Macatawa, the bench became one of our favorite destinations. Mother wrote a poem about it titled “Peace and Tranquility.” We...
