Sean Dietrich Articles

Sean of the South | Eulogy for the American newspaper

OPINION — I miss the newspaper. Before the internet. I’m talking physical newspapers. The kind you unfold.I miss the morning routine of it all. Walk to the end of the driveway, barefoot, pre-sunrise. Messy hair. Morning breath. Unsheath the newsprint from its plastic....

Sean of the South | A little bit of sole

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — It was a big park. A big city. The man was sitting on the sidewalk. Directly on the ground. And he was barefoot.His feet were scraped and bloody. He was picking at the sole of his foot. Maybe he was trying to remove a splinter? A shard of...

Sean of the South | Last night at the Opry

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — I arrive at the Opry House a few minutes before rehearsal. My guitar and fiddle cases trip the metal detector, so the security guard makes me open them.“You ain’t smuggling moonshine, are you?” says the guard with a watchful eye.“No,...

Sean of the South | Weird Al

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — The boy didn’t have a lot going for him. At least, that’s what his parents first thought.His parents were concerned. The other children would not stop laughing at their son. The other kids had turned him into a joke.His name was Al. And...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Jul 8, 2025

OPINION — Lake Martin shimmers beneath a heavy midday sun. I am sitting on a dock.There are distant sounds of splashing. Kids laughing. All the...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | Fourth of July

Jul 1, 2025

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — On my kitchen counter is a pound cake, sitting on a pedestal, beneath a glass dome.Pound cake is the food of summer. It...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | The Tomato Elegy

Jun 24, 2025

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — Thank you for the care package, Miss Paula. Thank you for the cute basket of homemade jams with handwritten labels. Do...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | The argument I had in the supermarket

Jun 17, 2025

OPINION — BY SEAN DIETRICH I got into an argument at the supermarket. This is how volatile our world is right now. It was in the checkout line. My...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | Vacation Bible Kids

Jun 10, 2025

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — “Dear Sean,” the email began. “I teach vacation Bible school… Last year we had three Latino children whose parents are...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | The art you find in Waffle House

Jun 3, 2025

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — Waffle House. My waitress has a bunch of tattoos. The women customers in the booth behind mine are talking about it in...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | It’s OK – I think

May 27, 2025

BY SEAN DIETRICH From June 1, 2024 OPINION — Today I read an article my friend sent to me. The article was something that went viral on social...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | Chaplains on the wall

May 20, 2025

From July 7, 2024OPINION — It was a weekend. A lot of people were there. And by “a lot,” I mean folks were standing two or three deep.It’s one of...

Sean of the South | Swimmers of Lake Martin

Sean of the South | The modern American teacher

May 13, 2025

BY SEAN DIETRICH OPINION — She shall remain anonymous.Her classroom was out of control. Had been for a while. The kids in her “at-risk” fourth-grade...

« Older Entries