14 Jan 2023

Starting the New Year with Pelicans

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Not intending any offense to Granite Staters, I must say that New Hampshire has never, in the almost-a-decade since I’ve lived here, looked so grey (and I don’t mean the average age of residents, although that’s probably true, too) as it did this past week. Heading to school one morning, I saw one edge of Turkey Pond looking like this. It’s peaceful enough in its drabness, and there’s nothing whatsoever wrong with New England being dressed in leaden skies in … Read More
7 Jul 2022

Empty Nesting: A Great Time for Exploring

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The Fourth of July might also be known as Independence Day, but I’d call the one we just had something closer to Togetherness Day. Awwww, this is going to be sweet and maybe even a little schmaltzy, you’re predicting. And I’m not even getting into KA-BOOM fireworks. (Although I can’t resist saying, on that topic, that we noticed an odd difference this year with our 13-year-old dog not being nearly as anxious with the noise as he has previously been. … Read More
27 May 2022

Joy and Devastation

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Those of us who celebrated high school graduations and college and university commencements across the land last weekend never expected that we’d be doing so within the bookends of two horrific national tragedies. Our loved ones who earned diplomas, walked across stages, were cheered by family and friends, felt the culmination of their efforts on a single day — they shone brightly. Joy was palpable in the soft breezes that danced across campuses, the robes that fluttered, the speeches that … Read More
13 Aug 2021

A Wedding: Two People…and Their Entire Teams

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When two people marry, they form a new union. And in so doing, they also create an far-reaching set of relationships between two families who were previously unconnected. A wedding ceremony, with that exchange of vows as the centerpiece, brings its own kind of alchemy. Cel-e-bration! We — my husband and kids — recently attended one such joyous occasion. Actually, it was an event that stretched over five fun-filled days in my hometown, along with my brothers and their families. … Read More
22 Jun 2021

Having and Not Having a Father

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It’s a couple of days past Father’s Day now — perfect for this post, because it’s about how time can bend. Didn’t Einstein do a little work on this, pulling in the whole universe in fact? I approximate, but I hope you’ll give me “close enough.” When it comes to understanding Einstein, we all could use a little give. Being no genius, I will nonetheless posit that these two things are not really opposites: having a father who is physically … Read More
21 Jan 2021

Proximity

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Do you know how sometimes in your mind things, events, people do a kind of pile-up? They’re completely separate, in a way, but they have a habit of congealing in clumps and then you just have to say, “Huh, that must be my particular pile-up. No one else would see it this way.” And this, my friends, must be partly what makes each one of us so special. One of these mental mash-ups happened to me a few days ago, … Read More
22 Jun 2020

Who’s Got Supper for Five Tonight?

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It was just plain irresponsible for me to pretend that I still had a blog during the past couple of months. But wait…it’s still here and so are you, I hope. School’s out now and, hot as it is outside, I feel as if I’m taking a cool swim even when I’m not. Relief washes over me– enough relief so that I can see one of the many Covid-19 contrasts coming clearly into focus. Rarely has there been a time … Read More
7 Oct 2018

One Color Goes A Long Way

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I’ve still not seen Orange is the New Black, and it probably would take a whole column just to digest the meaning of that title, let alone the impact of the show. But what I know for sure is that, every time autumn settles in, I’m conscious of how much just one color can express, all along the continuum between life and death. Nature does this alone, very nicely. Toss in some memories, and the path lights up even more, … Read More
15 Sep 2017

My Ancestors on Nantucket: Quakers and Whale-Hunters Both?

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I’ve just had a brush with some of my ancestors, and the experience has left me quaking in my sneakers. OK, that may be a bit of an exaggeration. I wasn’t exactly frightened…more stirred up, the way somebody on a turbulent ride might get. The questions I had before the meet-up have been partly answered, but now I have many more, plus a few contradictions that aren’t easily put to rest, as the ancestors themselves lie silent. Hearing that I … Read More
12 Jun 2017

Attention Must Be Paid…Or Maybe Not

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Less is more…especially in June, a dazzling and also tumultuous month that might as well be called “Jewel of a Jumble.” Shifting to a watery image, because it’s so hot today, I would also offer another name: “A Time to Keep Paddling, A Time to (Mostly) Refrain from Plunging.”     At this everything-is-happening-at-once time of year, deciding what not to do a deep dive into is just as important as deciding how to keep swimming forward through all the … Read More

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