Feature
Dirt
YESTERDAY, a large truck dumped seventy cubic yards of shredded cedar mulch onto our driveway. Then, because that first pile consumed more than two-thirds the driveway’s available space, the truck dumped Continue reading
Inner Life
blog post
Why I Need You to Take World Octopus Day Seriously
In our November/December 2011 issue, author and naturalist Sy Montgomery wrote “Deep Intellect,” which investigated the inner life of the octopus. Since its publication this feature remains the most-read Orion article Continue reading
blog post
Visiting Rachel
“PRIMAVERA SILENZIOSA.” So reads the cover of the Italian edition of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring. It sits on the desk beside me—the small built-in desk looking out on a thicket of Continue reading
Lay of the Land
The Price of Cherries
THE SECOND SPRING in our new home, the tree by the mailbox bursts into white blossoms. Last year, the blooms snapped off under a hard late frost. But now I hope Continue reading
Lay of the Land
The Last Cricket
BLAME IT ON OCTOBER. A nor’easter blows rain for three straight days and the gleam of blackened tree trunks lifts every summer thought from my head. Then one night I find Continue reading