By Rich Osborne It has been a good summer for performances. We saw “Rent” at the Vashon Center for the Arts. Spectacular. Strong cast, great musicians, the whole meal deal. A well-deserved standing ovation. I laughed, I cried, I remembered what it was like, performing in New York, in the late seventies. (Yes! I was…
Island Voices, September 2026
Magnificent Ruins
Part Three: Wingehaven, Shakespeare’s Shack, MacDonald’s Farm By Richard Odell Mike Sudduth, classmate, fellow Beall Greenhouse potting-shed drudge, and Vashon historical researcher, lent a hand with this article. Down deep into the canyon below the Falcon’s Nest, down to where you could hear waves break on the beach, you came upon another monumental relic; a…
Island Voices, September 2026
What’s Next?
By Gates (Pam) Johnson I am about sick and tired of talking about my stupid health. Long story short, yeah, I have some major health problems. Yeah, it’s been a long hellacious journey. Yeah, it ain’t over yet, but the big stuff is in the rear-view mirror. Now it’s time to focus on the future….
Island Voices, September 2026
An Elephant For Her Birthday!
By Suzanna Leigh It was my mother Marj’s 102nd Birthday celebration, and the family were gathered around. The traditional feast was consumed, the dishes washed, and the gluten-free pineapple upside-down cake served and eaten. It was time for presents. Mom carefully, with some help, unwrapped an oddly shaped gift from daughter Jeannie – and her…
August 2026, Island Voices
Why Share My Story?
By Gates (Pam) Johnson As you may know if you have read my previous rantings here in The Loop, I have been dealing with a cancer diagnosis and treatments since March. For some weird reason, I decided my feelings and experiences might be good fodder for my monthly musings. People may ask, “Why do you…
August 2026, Island Voices
From Cowrie Shell to Clam Shell
By Suzanna Leigh The end of my sojourn with the Pilgrims Christian Commune in Hawaii came when a man from the home church on the mainland came to speak to us. Along with some possibly prejudiced prophecies about the coming end of the world, he told us that Ken, the head of Pilgrims, was an…
August 2026, Island Voices
Magnificent Ruins
Part Two: The Falcon’s Nest By Richard Odell from Part One: “My parents would one day move to that island, and within a few years find themselves, by choice of housing, connected by an overgrown lane to the source of that pillar of smoke, a mansion that now lay in ruins. I was but five…
August 2026, Island Voices
Finding God in Nature … and People
By Mike Ivaska One of the things I really appreciate about life on Vashon is how quickly we can immerse ourselves in nature here. Within ten minutes of walking or driving, depending on where you live, a trailhead awaits. You don’t even have to have anything resembling survival skills – which, for me, is particularly…
August 2026, Island Voices
Should We Talk About Trans Issues? Yes, and Here’s Why …
By March Twisdale Years ago, a very smart friend of mine said the following: “Puberty blockers are perfectly safe. All you’re doing is hitting the pause button on puberty. When you go off them, everything resumes like normal. No harm done.” I remember that moment. Where I was standing. The weather. The time of day….
August 2026, Health Matters, Island Voices
Animism, Hearing Loss, and the Power of Birdwatching
By Gabrielle Wildheart I am the cliché of the midlife person who spontaneously develops an interest in birdwatching. I’ve been on the Merlin app for a few years now, but in the summer of my 39th year things got a bit more serious, and I graduated to E-bird. (If you know, you know.) It’s no…