Sean Dietrich Articles

FLY

BY SEAN DIETRICH I am writing from a plane that is stuck on a runway. It’s raining. Hard. I have a screaming baby behind me. Angry passengers surround me.I have to be in Atlanta tonight, but it’s not looking good.We have been on this god-forsaken plane for an hour,...

America

BY SEAN DIETRICH There are three or four neighborhood cats who sit on my porch each morning as I write. They are feral animals. They were here when we moved in. Nobody owns them. But they are fixtures in our neighborhood.My morning writing routine is pretty...

America

“Sean, when are you going to say something about America and the pitiful state we’re in … ? A lot of people are speaking out … Have you heard the song “Rich Men North of Richmond”? It’s about American oppression … But you have remained silent and are thus part of the...

Nicknames

I have a friend who was recently asked by his employer to use a different name in his workplace. My friend’s nickname is “Tater Log.” But mostly, we just call him “Tater,” “Tater Bug” or “Sweet Tater Pie.”  Tater’s employer, however, felt this name was...
‘Tis of Thee

‘Tis of Thee

By Sean Dietrich It hangs from my porch, slack on a breezeless day. It is stunning in the early sunlight. The colors are so vivid you can see them...

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Holy Cow

Holy Cow

By Sean Dietrich This story is not mine. But I’m going to tell it anyway. And our story begins at night. Nighttime in the countryside can feel eerie...

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Holy Cow

The Old Man on the Hill

By Sean Dietrich DEAR SEAN: My dad is in the process of dying. He has mild dementia and he’s bitter right now, and is lashing out at all of us...

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Holy Cow

The smell of books

By Sean Dietrich I was not a good grade-school student. It was hard for me to follow a classroom lesson. I was always distracted and lost in my own...

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Holy Cow

Good

By Sean Dietrich MURRAY, Utah.—John works at a Nissan dealership in the service department. A customer called and said they had a big problem. John...

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Holy Cow

Goodbye, Summer

By Sean Dietrich Dear Summer, You were not a great season this year. In fact, you were the worst. I’m glad to see you go. I hope autumn is better....

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‘Tis of Thee

Mustang Sally

By Sean Dietrich A hotel lobby. I am 951 miles from home, watching the news channels show hurricane footage taken from my hometown in Florida. The...

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‘Tis of Thee

Pennsylvania

By Sean Dietrich Sunrise. A small Pennsylvania town. I’m sipping weak coffee, writing from the porch of a small 1893 inn that overlooks Appalachia....

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‘Tis of Thee

Dear Sean

By Sean Dietrich CYNTHIA— I’m depressed because I’m stuck indoors because I have a compromised immune system. I miss my husband. He died two years...

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