I stretched out my arms and legs, stiff from sitting in the same position for hours. I stood up, realizing I was hungry and didn’t remember when I had last eaten. I stumbled into the kitchen and my father, upon seeing me, remarked, “You’re alive! I haven’t seen you move in days.” “Ha, ha, Dad,”…
I wake to two of my favorite things: a cup of coffee on my nightstand and a sky warming for the sunrise. Gratitude should be first on my mind, but in the split second between sleep and awake, my mind rests on an unsettling word: depersonalized. Indicators of burnout have been popping up for months—waking…
Dear Reader, I love stories. I have been an avid reader for as long as I can remember. I devoured books late into the night–or rather the early hours of the morning–especially during summer months when I didn’t have to be up early for school the next day. My imagination would often run away with…
What fills your mind? Stories have played a major part in my ability to cope with the hard of life. They filled the space that was overgrown with fear and uncertainty like water rushing into a jar covered with old grime. My imagination became the tool I utilized to allow my curiosity to have free…
The late Yogi Berra, famed manager of the New York Yankees and master of nonsensical one-liners, is reported to have said, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up someplace else.” This is both ridiculous and profound, particularly as it pertains to life at the half-way point. One of the ways not to…
On February 20, 1883, the New York Times ran a quirky, little page 3 story about a Mrs. Mary McMullen, residing at 2nd Avenue and 34th Street, who complained to the Board of Health about “an intolerable stench” in her neighborhood. Having grown up on a farm, I know a thing or two about intolerable…
Darkness, and then eyes open Inhale deep Eyes close, exhale Inspiration – a curious thing – Prolonging life; Creating space and time for what will happen Before, between, and after each breath. Wondrous imagination, Before the day even begins Breathe in – Breathe out Seeing the dew drops on the grass The dusky purples and…
Part of the delight of spending time with my oldest grandson is that he takes nothing for granted. Nothing. “Bam, why bubble pop?” “Because you stood on it.” “Why?” Well, good question. Why indeed, and our conversations have routinely run on in this vein of relentless curiosity. Now that he’s old enough to have moved…