Words, words, words

Words, words, words

Words can make a difference in our lives. They can hurt. They can make the day special, one we will always remember. A word can change the course our lives. They can change our political and religious views. They can ruin our lives. I remember a day at the playground...

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Death – and Life.

Death – and Life.

I read a letter from a mom in a column in the newspaper the other day. Her five-year-old daughter was very worried about death and was staying awake nights worrying about it. Her mom didn’t know what to tell the girl. As an atheist, I probably worry about death more...

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A Brief History of My Pianos

A Brief History of My Pianos

I’m a classical pianist. But I’ve always been envious of other musicians. Almost every member of the orchestra gets to carry his own special instrument and perform on it. Flutes, clarinets, guitars, cellos, violas, piccolos, French horns. People in bands get to march...

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Middle C: My Home Button

Middle C: My Home Button

When I was five years old, I started taking piano lessons from a kind old lady named Mrs. Sale. At least, I think she was old. I was only five, so she could have been in her late thirties, and I would have thought she was old. I learned where Middle C was right away,...

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Filters

Filters

I was thinking about Donald Trump the other day. Don't worry, this blog isn't going to be about politics. Really! I was thinking about how people see him so differently. A majority of Americans think he's a terrible president, should be impeached, lies constantly,...

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Hi, I’m Sue Mattern.

I always wanted to be defined by my music… and by my writing—something I accomplished artistically. But one spring Sunday in 1986, a new definition was suddenly written about me. I was the mother of a 5-year old girl who was attacked and almost killed by a mountain lion in Orange County.