By Gates (Pam) Johnson Tomorrow morning at o’dark thirty I will be off to the hospital for my hopefully first and last cancer surgery. Seems like it has been a long journey to get here, but in reality it has been about two months, give or take. Those months have been filled with super highs…
Island Voices, June 2026, Literary
Parallel Lives – Lois
By Richard Odell Some among us get trees like a disease. Big boys are especially prone, but big girls get it too, sometimes. The psychosis might simmer for years, before it really starts to roil. I’d always been a plant guy, and I liked trees well enough. Wanted to see more of them, hated to…
Island Voices, June 2026
The Rule of Law
By Michael Shook In previous pieces about Communism, we saw how its foundational Marxist doctrine renders the individual null and void, and declares that humans are infinitely malleable. Such a doctrine readies the ground for a system that is free to ignore the sovereignty, both individual and collective, of the people living within it. Such…
Entertainment, Island Voices, June 2026
Llaughing Llamas Chronicles – June
By Daniel Hooker Three From Debbie at Ace Hardware: Q: Why do the French eat only one egg for breakfast? A: In French, one egg is un oeuf. ~ Q: How many nihilists does it take to change a light bulb? A: It doesn’t take any, because why should they change the light bulb? It’s…
Island Resilience, Island Voices, May 2026
What’s Next After You Get the Big C Diagnosis
By Gates (Pam) Johnson It’s been a rough few months. In December, I had major back surgery that would hopefully help my foot neuropathy, but would take a year to heal. Okay. I can deal with that. Not fun, but chances are good that life will get better because of the surgery. A couple of…
Island Voices, May 2026
How Do You Make a Grandmother Cry?
By Rocky (Donna) Liberty Raggedy Andy & Ann – crafted by the author How to make a grandma cry. Take a labor of love, add in animal instinct, throw in some time (thyme), fate, and Voilà! She was ten years old and the apple of my eye. I would die for my grandchild if necessary,…
Island Voices, May 2026
Memories of a Banyan Tree
By Suzanna Leigh James and I landed in Honolulu in late February of 1974. No one to meet me, of course. Culture shock; people in shorts, brightly colored shirts, long muumuus, fragrant plumeria leis around their necks. The very air smelled different. I knew no one. I sat on the edge of a fountain with…
Island Voices, May 2026
Dismal Fruits
By Michael Shook Over the last two months, we’ve gotten “thumbnail” sketches of both the innate desire of humans for a perfect, usually communal, society, and of the father of modern Communism, Karl Marx. Now it’s time for a look at some of the fruits of the ideologies of Marxism and Communism. For all Karl…
Island Voices, May 2026
Going After Vashon: Encouraging More
By Deborah H. Anderson I had an opportunity recently to get some closure about my years as a pastor on Vashon. I was one of the first full-time female pastors, and for sure the first soccer Mom pastor. It was sweet and gentle, and I was able to forgive many. Forgiveness is easier when the…
April 2026, Island Voices
Healing and The Last Three Chair Squats
By Deborah H. Anderson Three weeks ago, I was introduced before preaching on “Fasting as a Practice of Calling Down Justice” at an Ash Wednesday service. The Sister of the Cloth said “… And when she sings, it comes from a place so deep inside of her.” I was so grateful to hear that the…