The Tree Lit from Within
We don’t know what we’ll miss until it’s gone The forsythia tree is in full bloom right now, as if lit from within, the golden branches the brightest thing framed in my window, the brightest plant in my yard. The … Read More
Toppled Heroes, Cesar Chavez, Reflected Glory
I loved an activist hero who was part of the Movement. Which movement? The Movement. The one that was mine, or was yours. His obituary was in The New York Times. I knew that when he died, there would be a large, public … Read More
We Have Learned To Face Tyranny
The redemption I found in watching the response in Minneapolis I despaired as I watched the videos from Minneapolis showing the shooting of Alex Pretti. I turned to Facebook to watch videos from the many friends and people I know … Read More
Synchronicity and Gift Giving
Like genetic pool, same environment My brother and his wife said they would bring Christmas Day dinner. They brought meatballs and mashed potatoes to refrigerate overnight. I had prepared meatballs and mashed potatoes for Christmas Eve. I rarely make meatballs, … Read More
Stranger Things: What a Geezer Learns
Coming into age in a horror show Stranger Things has released the latest episodes of the mash-up coming-of-age 80’s nostalgia (my god, yes, that’s a thing), horror movie, gang hang together, good vs. evil series. I’ve become a fan, with too … Read More
Ordinary Time
The Highs and Lows of Holidays Throughout the Years Last year, we had no Thanksgiving celebration. My daughter-in-law was to give birth any day. The baby was scheduled to be induced the day after Thanksgiving, if nothing had happened. We … Read More
Planning for the Stranger Who Will Inhabit my Body
Failing the Mini-COG Test The mini-COG test that the American president has bragged about acing is a screening test for referral to neurological testing. I told the nurse that if the president could pass it, it would be no problem … Read More
We Lose Bits of Our Stories When We Lose Our Celebrities
Although she never married… Sharon Johnson 3 min read · Oct 18, 2025 Diane Keaton was a visual presence from my 20s to my 70s, her Annie Hall-inspired look a reference point. I had moved to New York City from … Read More
The Amber Glow of October Light
Later in life, realizations Yesterday I went to Sauvie Island, at the intersection of the Columbia and Willamette Rivers. The marine layer nestled above the landscape until noon, when the sun got warm enough to burn off the clouds, moist … Read More
Separating the Art from the Artist
When the Art is Memorable but the Actions Are Despicable Is there a celebrity (musician, writer, actor, artist,…) whose work you like, but whom you boycott because of his/her ideology/beliefs/preferences? The question is one of great importance in these times. … Read More