Article Archives: Words with Woods

Together

December 17, 2020 | by CJ Woods III

Early one recent morning as I stirred awake, I slid my hand across the sheet and encountered a hard, flat object: a book. Though barely awake, I smiled at the memory of how it came to be underneath the sheet and comforter that had warmed me through the night, remembering … Read More

Flip the Page

December 10, 2020 | by CJ Woods III

In my kitchen, pinned against a wall, is a 2020 calendar, with each month featuring a different bird; as I passed it this week, I noticed that it still showed “Sparrow,” the bird for November. I am like many people in the digital world: I no longer rely on printed … Read More

Comes The Time

December 3, 2020 | by CJ Woods III

When my first child was young, her mother and I were in agreement about Christmas-time gift-giving for her. We got her things that were fun, things that were practical and things that she needed for her health and well-being. We made no effort to bury the Christmas tree in packages. … Read More

Thanks For The Time

November 26, 2020 | by CJ Woods III

When my mother was alive and I would visit her in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she would often ask her “Joni” to sing a song to her. My middle name in Jon, and my family nickname is Joni (pronounced “Johnny”) and my mother’s first three children used to sing together in the … Read More

The Clean Plate Club

November 19, 2020 | by CJ Woods III

In a segment of a series I was watching on Hulu, a character made reference to the “clean plate club” as he instructed another character about a peculiar torture. I was surprised to hear the term, as I’d never before, heard it outside of my childhood. My father frequently used … Read More