Phil and I finally canceled the newspaper subscription. We did it months ago, yet still the paper appeared at the end of the driveway. It was part of the morning ritual for Pepin to "retrieve" it. Some days the sections were strewn across the front yard, leaving Phil to collect the mangled pages. But often [...]
Phil and I have been on several weekend road trips lately--to Chisholm for a family memorial service, to Leech Lake for a reunion with dear friends, along with frequent trips to our cabin in Herbster. We like to listen to audiobooks along the way, carrying our minds to distant places, instead of the highway beneath [...]
I learned a lot about life stages from my friend Jean. She developed several important developmental affirmations over years of study and collaboration with partners in parent education. The affirmations fit all stages of life from infancy to death and have been used by people all over the world. Here are a few: I love [...]
Today as I ride along the familiar route to Abbott Northwestern Hospital, I think of all the times I have bumped along the potholes of 28th Street, turned left on 10th Avenue, entered the ramp and circled the dark floors to park, find the floor and suite where we were expected. There was a Tuesday [...]
Having trouble sleeping? Me too. Read about some of the science of sleep and practical tips that might help.
Are you a modern elder? And what does that mean exactly? Read about a midlife wisdom school and preparing for retirement.
"With the words, You are a grandmother... I became something different than I'd ever been before." Anna Quindlen from Nanaville: Adventures in Grandparenting by Anna Quindlen At Orchestra Hall with Louis to hear Cantus sing with Sweet Honey in the Rock, 2017. For the first time, my husband (aka Papa) and I (Didi) took care [...]
In a dream I dive off a pier into a lake. I am not a strong swimmer, but today I dive with ease, surface quickly and skim along the water’s surface like Olympic racers do, in a rhythm that is easy and strong, fast and even. I can see fish and plant life below the [...]
My parents died of cancer, mom (in 2017) just 8 weeks after diagnosis and Dad (in 2014) after being sick for a year. And over these last few years, I have been a student of grief, hungry for ways to express it in a healing way, to seek out others to give me a “how [...]
"Franceso Bought Me Flowers," a true act of care and kindness I won't forget.
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