Essays

The Life And Legend of Duke, The Hoarding Golden Retriever

There is a golden retriever in Richmond who has solved a problem that has plagued mankind since the invention of interior design: the problem of things being where you left them. His name is Duke, he is 11 years old, and he has decided, with supreme confidence, that everything in the house belongs in his […]

by Madeline Mayhood

Confessions of a Serial Houseplant Killer Trying Again

I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I whisper as the faucet runs. Is this the best way to do it? It certainly seems like the most effective method. I hold it up, feeling like Hamlet in an existential crisis. Why am I the way that I am? It—Rosso—stares back at me like he’s disgusted. I could […]

by Gabriela de Camargo Gonçalves

The Complicated Love Story of Two Virginia Dogs

Their romance concerned me from the beginning. As a former high school health teacher, much of my 10th grade curriculum focused on unhealthy relationships. I knew the signs. Equality was key, and their relationship seemed one-sided. I questioned if Molly truly liked Ollie’s “playful” roughhousing. He loved to pounce and pin her, burying his nose […]

by Sherrie Page Guyer

A Journey of Friendship and Renewal

My seven-woman friend group successfully managed homes, careers, and raised children to adulthood, but found ourselves ill-prepared as the challenges of caring for aging parents only got harder. Ranging in age from 56–64, some of us had already lost a mother or father. We felt the toll as diseases, including Alzheimer’s, wiped away the once […]

by Sherrie Page Guyer

Listen for the Jingle: Finding Christmas Magic

When I was little, my grandmother, Pete, and I headed downtown from our home in Malvern Gardens to go shopping: school shoes or Easter bonnets. A dress to wear in my class picture. White Shoulders perfume for her. I carried a black patent leather purse that matched my shoes. We rode the East/West bus line […]

by Margo Peters Millure

Sweet Holiday Memories from Virginia Writers

Stories of family, tradition, and the joy—and chaos—of the holiday season from writers across the state. The Frost & The Furious By Eric J. Wallace The snow was falling heavily when we stopped at a middle-of-nowhere gas station for push-button hot chocolates. Floodlights blazed through a silent wash of pebble-sized flakes falling like stones through […]

by Hope Cartwright & Eric J. Wallace & Ciara Brennan & Stephanie Ganz & Craig Stoltz & Madeline Mayhood

Summer’s Road Trips & Magic Memories

The rhythmic pitter-patter on the roof echoes throughout the house as my mother yells, “Hurry! We’re going to miss it!” My bare feet scramble as the anticipation prompts a broad smile across my face. When I reach the backyard, I see that my mom is right: I wouldn’t want to miss this—a perfect summer rain. […]

by Gabriela de Camargo Gonçalves

Confessions of a Chronic Over (and Under) Packer

“You know they’ll have that there, right?” my boyfriend Jack asks while I stuff body wash into my bulging bag. What self-respecting Airbnb doesn’t have soap in their shower? I, however, am particular about my lavender-scented soap. I must have my own toiletries, which isn’t so outrageous, but the problems arise when I push my […]

by Gabriela de Camargo Gonçalves

Finding Connection Through Birdwatching and Serendipity

While out for a stroll, my husband and I wander into a garden shop in Georgetown. The person behind the counter is in her 20s, pale-skinned, nose ring, blue jean overalls. “Can I help you find something?” she asks. “We’re looking for a tablecloth,” I tell her. She points to a stack of Indian block […]

by Page Evans Corey

Echoes of Valor

Amid the rolling hills of Virginia, a small town bears the heavy weight of history.

by Dawn Klavon

Memories of a Father and Son’s Epic Quail Hunt

A certain smell can retrieve the oldest of memories, ones tucked away in the mind’s basement in a filing cabinet labeled “Childhood,” seldom recalled but especially vivid when they are. One of mine that instantly returns me to age 8 is an autumn bouquet of cool outdoors, earthy woods, and eau de dog that clung […]

by George Tisdale

Gimp, Guns, & Mumbly Peg

Remembering summer camp in Virginia.

by Susan Martin Mitchell

A Valentine for Kissinger

If anyone needed a love note in 1972, he did. In February, when conversation hearts begin showing up on store shelves and long-stemmed roses fill flower shop windows, my thoughts turn to President Nixon’s Secretary of State. Henry Kissinger entered my life in 1971, when I was just seven. I was […]

by Staff

My Life on a Roller Coaster

A terrifying rite of summer becomes a family tradition. (Illustration by Robert Neubecker) Look around any theme park and you’ll notice two kinds of kids: the daredevils who ride every roller coaster, waving their hands in the air and screaming their heads off. And the timid ones, like I was, secretly praying […]

by Staff

Lazy River

Tubing lets multiple generations unplug and reconnect. Kyle LaFerriere VA Living Tubing My family has always felt at home on the water. To us, a salty ocean, brackish bay, or freshwater river feels like a baptism. We feel renewed, made whole. So when my parents visited us in Richmond to celebrate their […]

by Staff

The Soft Shells of Summer

Checking the peeler pot was a river ritual. (Illustration by James Albon) I was probably in my 30s before it dawned on me that I could order soft shell crabs in a restaurant. In the summers of my childhood, soft shells came from the York River, where we’d anchor a slatted wooden […]

by Constance Costas

Lost and Found

A shattered wine glass delivers a message. I was decluttering long before Marie Kondo-ing was a thing. Scuffed Teflon skillets, Sony Walkman, long-forgotten books. When an item outlives its usefulness, out it goes. But some things are so treasured that losing them can feel like a slap. No matter how much […]

by Staff

Potato Chips & Gratitude

The transformative power of a thank you. (Illustration by Hadley Hooper) When I was a child, I learned that any joy that lingered after a Christmas or birthday would quickly curdle with one stern question from my mother: “Have you written your thank-you notes?” Thus, the habit was ingrained and, in […]

by Staff

Southern Ways

She was just passing through; but Ashland had other plans. (Illustration by Jane Webster) In my mid-40s, I almost married a farmer-professor from Vermont. In preparation for my new life, I bought a pair of rubberized boots, a new L.L. Bean parka, and tried to get interested in tapping trees for maple syrup. […]

by Phyllis Theroux

Pages: 12

Buc-ee’s Opens Its First Virginia Location

If you happened to be standing near the I-81 exit for Mt. Crawford in the early morning hours of this past June 30, you’d have witnessed a spectacle. Shoppers flooded into the parking lot and shuffled into block-long lines in hopes of being among the first through the doors of Virginia’s first Buc-ee’s travel station. […]

by Eric J. Wallace

Norfolk Harborfest Returns for Its 50th Anniversary

From June 19–21, Downtown Norfolk welcomes a fleet of over 60 international and U.S. tall ships to celebrate VA250. “Harborfest celebrates the rich maritime and naval heritage that defines Norfolk and the Hampton Roads region,” says Jordan Lett, marketing director of Norfolk Festevents. “With something happening throughout the waterfront each day, Harborfest offers an immersive […]

by Abby Borgeson

U.S. News & World Report Names This Virginia School as One of The Best in The Nation

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology’s streak of hard-hitting accolades continues this year with a glowing review from U.S. News & World Report. The outlet recently crowned it the top high school in Virginia—and fifth best in the nation—for 2026. The ranking praised the Fairfax-based magnet school’s STEM-focused curriculum that builds toward a […]

by Eric J. Wallace

Essays

The Life And Legend of Duke, The Hoarding Golden Retriever

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Essays

The Life And Legend of Duke, The Hoarding Golden Retriever

Current Issue

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Most Popular

Buc-ee’s Opens Its First Virginia Location

Norfolk Harborfest Returns for Its 50th Anniversary

U.S. News & World Report Names This Virginia School as One of The Best in The Nation

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weekly newsletter: VL Today

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