Dinner means waiting.
It means setting the table
with placemats and napkins,
and neatly set silver,
pitchers of water
and plates for your salad;
and waiting and waiting,
as smells from the kitchen,
from sizzling pans and simmering pots,
waft through the house
like intoxicating fog.
Making it hard to concentrate
on anything but the the clock,
and the driveway,
where we turn our attentions
every few minutes,
hoping for headlights.
Stomachs gurgling.
Tempers shortening.
Dad finally showing
and ever so slowly…
shedding his suit.
Un-harried.
Unhurried
to get the meal going.
Though children are moaning.
Haven’t eaten in minutes.
But dinner begins
when Dad’s ready to sit.
And no sooner.
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 