This first appeared before the arrival of Covid-19 so I guess that most of our family members were a bit more prepared for these scaled back holidays. And, with the exception of limited opportunities to exercise volition, I’m feeling a lot of the same things. Opt Out of a Whole Bunch of Frantic? From giant Thanksgiving meals to champagne at midnight on the last day of the year and a whole bunch of frantic in between… ’tis the season. Fa-la-la. And if it’s true that time moves…
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Wildfires and Faith. Dearhearts and Fire Poppies.
Every year I watch, full of fear, as Californians flee (or don’t flee) homes that are devoured by wildfires. We have family and friends around the state; despite hearing about go-bags in the cars, I remain mystified by the the combination of steeliness and flexibility they display. On the other hand, I’ve met people who are frightened by New England’s blizzards and ice storms. After several years, I’m adjusting to Florida’s hurricanes. At first I relied on information from neighbors coupled with firm, specific instructions from my…
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Our Friend Oscar and His Inner Critic
Once upon a time we had a friend, a guy named Oscar. Like most — maybe all — of us, he had an inner critic. The problem was, he did not know that his inner critic could become an ally. Our friend struggled and stayed stuck — convinced that those ugly words the inner critic put into his head were, in fact, true. One day, somebody gave our friend a book. A very good book. An award-winning book. At first Oscar wasn’t sure why he had…
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What is Banned Books Week and Why You Should Care
How often do you think about censorship? Banned books? I tend to think of censorship as it pertains to history — something that hasn’t happened much since the McCarthy era, right? So would you be surprised to find out that the American Library Association maintains a list of challenged (and sometimes banned) books by year? I was. I am disgusted by the concept of censorship. It’s not difficult to connect dots between banning certain books and trends in discrimination. Besides, learning to sort through ideas with which…
