Defying the somber shades of dead in a Midwestern Winter,
when most everything surrounding the small, plexiglass world
was limp and lifeless,
hidden beneath thick, mean layers of snow and ice.
green was something you could see,
smell
and touch
in Mom’s greenhouse.
Stepping down into its steamy realm
was like discovering a distant jungle.
Moist.
Pungent.
Earthy.
Exotic.
I’d sit on the cement stairs,
arms hanging over the metal railing
moist from the humidity.
Galoshes and socks dangling precariously.
Watching Mom dig her hands into a soily concoction.
Inhaling strange, sweet smells
of bone meal and blood meal.
Manure and lime.
And life.
Nurtured with the same intensity Mom tended her flock.
Passionate and determined all should flourish.
Cultivating her offspring with a unique and fertile mix
of love and cynicism,
melancholy,
curiosity
and eccentricity.
Author: Anne Celano Frohna
I have been writing for as long as I could hold a pencil in hand and would not feel complete without it.
And I actually made a meager living at it (and as an editor) for 25 years.
I worked for newspapers and magazines, in graphic arts and advertising, and wrote several local history books.
But I have also taught English in Japan, been a Nanny/family chef in Italy, worked in and for museums, was an Airbnb Superhost for four years, as well as an Etsy shop owner, where I sold vintage items I found over the years at thrift stores and yard sales.
After moving to Arizona with my family in 2010, I completed a series of different writing projects, including two books of creative non-fiction:
Just West of the Midwest: a comedy (Based on journals I kept during my two years as an English teacher in rural Japan.)
Within Close Range: short stories of an American Childhood (Short stories and poems about growing up as the middle of five children in suburban Chicago.)
But in the past few years, I have found my voice in poetry.
I am a mother of two wonderful girls, Eva (26) and Sophia (24) and wife to one wonderful husband, Kurt.
In 2023, with our girls grown and off on their own, my husband and I packed up our things and moved to the tip of Italy’s heel, to the Salento region, where I continue to work on my poetry, as well as a new fiction project, and indulge in my passion for mosaics - all of which you can view on my Instagram page @ acfrohna.
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Dog-eared Stories by anne celano frohna 