Military Rituals Honor a Life Well Lived
The funeral was short, meaningful, perhaps a quarter hour of memories and prayers. A daughter had organized a slide show of his life, in chapters. Childhood. Marriage, a union that had lasted more than sixty years. Military service. Children. Work. Grandchildren. Travel. Adventure. The sanctuary was crowded. He had touched many lives and we wanted to say goodbye. To pay tribute as his soul moved on. Presenting the American Flag My husband and I had not been close [...]
Loving the Little Girl Inside Me
French T-Shirt We took a ridiculously long time to get to know, respect and honor each other. For years, I pushed her aside, unconsciously trying to silence her with bribes of ice cream, candy, and other high calorie sleep-inducing treats. Sometimes I gave her chocolate when she needed enough energy to get something done. I refused to consider her worthy of legitimate claims on my attention and energy. Once the adult in me earned enough money to [...]
He Risked His Life to Prevent a Jump Off a Bridge
A recent local news release brought the story of Nicholas Doddo, a college student, who risked his own life to save that of another young man whom he had never seen before. Sitting in Friday evening traffic on the Tappan Zee Bridge, Mr. Doddo had suddenly realized that someone was racing headlong to the barrier with the intent of jumping over it to his inevitable death. Mr. Doddo’s instincts led him to leave his car, cross traffic lanes in [...]
Watching Tears Form in My Friend’s Eyes
My friend is one of those women who manage to address life directly. Trained as a research scientist, she is clear-headed, quick to analyze a problem, look at data, evaluate options, and carefully track the progress of possible solutions. She has a brilliant mind and a memory that can embarrass the rest of us. She bites into life, eager to experience all it can offer and moves on with grace when loss or pain might make others flinch. In the [...]
An American Eskimo Puppy Melted Her Grieving Heart
Kathy was drowning in pain. Her mother had just died and her husband had been diagnosed with cancer. Her dog of fifteen years was gone. All around her, her world was crumbling as she struggled to let go of one lifelong love and needed to face the challenging road ahead with another. Her husband was in the hospital the weekend that she spotted the ad When she told her girlfriend, Amber, about the puppies, her wise friend insisted that Kathy [...]
Finding Her Legacy After My Mother Died
My mother died two months before the annual July clearance sales. I found myself walking through Saks Fifth Avenue, and there, on the sale shoe rack and in size 7, were the shoes. Shoes my Mother Would Have Loved Ones I never would have stopped to ogle. Impractical. High heels, for one thing. And spectator style, the white leather inevitably requiring restoration periodically. But they were beautiful. And sexy. And unusual. These were shoes my mother would have [...]
Aging with Grace – Loving Oneself
In New York, where the way people protect their boundaries can predict paranoia, I never would have approached the woman in purple. But I was an American in Paris, she was “of a certain age”, I was captivated by her poise and presence, and I wanted her to know she was not invisible. David and I had boarded Bus 80 at Porte de Versailles. Our morning at the Salon du Chocolat had stretched well into the afternoon and left us [...]
Cataract Surgery and NOT Driving the Car
David had eye surgery a few weeks ago. For months he had found reading to be challenging and colors distorted. Because of our winter trips to Paris, scheduling the removal of his cataracts, one eye at a time, had required serial delays. Neither of us thought that being across an ocean during his follow-up period was a good idea. Finally, the surgery date had come. The idea of a knife going into his eye, even with the assistance of a [...]