Our building has finally come to the end of a long maintenance project, and the final step was a professional window washing to clear away the last of the construction dust. What a great way to welcome the holiday season! The long awaited day came, and I wrestled the screens out of the way before […]
I love that travel can allow us to see our own homes with fresh eyes. And I have the same experience after gathering with loved ones – a chance to return to myself with added clarity, a renewal born of remembrance. Dear ones, time flies away. We are so often scattered and scared. May we […]
I found myself at a new restaurant in a new town this week, and when time came for dessert the waiter announced, “Our featured dessert tonight is… an enigma.” He proceeded to describe a sort of parsnip pudding. I thought to myself, hmmm. Then I thought, well, I surely will not be offered parsnip pudding […]
In a temporary triumph over our algorithmic overlords, I have managed to steer most of my online feeds towards gardeners, baby animals, and singers. This means I saw a lot of replays this week of the movie premiere where a so-called fan rushed toward a famed musical lead. Her costars leapt into action, one shoving […]
Dear ones, I have been thinking this week about hope, and how the meanest circumstances are the ones that rob us of it, making hope feel foolish and flimsy. What can we lean on in a hopeless time? Where might there be shelter or comfort or respite? This post from back in the pandemic summer […]
I had an hour free in New York recently, and instead of scrolling through endless emails I hopped down the High Line to see the Calder Circus, a bizarro delight that might be even more enchanting a century after its debut. Within minutes, I was immersed in an alternate universe, first trying to trace the […]
I heard an author this week describe the research process both as a deep dive for facts and also as a treasure hunt for historical characters, the ones who can animate a story and carry it forward. A few minutes later he distinguished between characters and caricatures, noting that the goal is not to […]
I was lucky to attend several philanthropic events this past week, and one honoree noted that upon receiving a very prestigious award years ago, he was advised, “This is not a prize. This is a responsibility.” I have to admit, though I admire the lack of back-slapping reflected in this quote, part of me was […]
On my walk to work the other day I stepped on something squishy. This is never a great thing in the city, so my first thought was, “don’t look down, just keep walking.” But when I did glance to the ground, I saw half an apple rolling away. And then another. And another. Even then, […]
Oh dear friends, it’s been a week of loss – first Jane Goodall, luminous ambassador for the Gombe and our kin the chimpanzees, and then Manchan Magan, illuminator of Irish land, language, and culture. Both worked in settings where the most precious elements had been exploited and endangered, and both knew the full costs of […]