Life
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Reframing Aging
My position has always been that the way people age and the signs that we show of aging is nature’s way of tattooing. It’s natural scarification, and the life you lead gives you the symbols and the emblems of your life, the road map you followed. Frances McDormand As I wrote about in my article… Continue reading
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No Kings
The strength and power of despotism consists wholly in the fear of resistance. Thomas Paine Very early Saturday morning, a misguided MAGA follower assassinated a Minnesota state legislator and her husband and severely wound another legislator and his wife. Both legislators were Democrats. After a gunfight from which the killer escaped, the police found a… Continue reading
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A Spoonful of Laughter
Holding onto anger and resentment harms you, whereas forgiveness brings joy. Twelve-step groups consist of diverse individuals and are not religious; they promote personal interpretations of a higher power. Laughter plays a crucial role in recovery, enabling individuals to view addiction differently, foster connection, and heal their egos, ultimately transforming their lives. Continue reading
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My Big Year
Some sweet dayI’ll make her mine, pretty flamingoThen every guy will envy me‘Cause paradise is where I’ll be Mark Barkan Linda and I recently watched the 2011 movie The Big Year. Despite the star power of Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson, it was a box office flop. It cost around $41 million to… Continue reading
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Mom
It may be possible to gild pure gold, but who can make his mother more beautiful? Mahatma Gandhi My mother, Bernadine Mary Hazinski Prokop, passed away this past Friday at 4:40 a.m. Arizona Time. She was 98 years old. There is much that I would like to say about Mom, but it’s too early in… Continue reading
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Variations on a Theme
Hapy, the ancient god of the Nile, depicted at Dendera with Cleopatra, is typically shown with breasts – symbolism that demonstrated how the life-giving gifts of Egypt’s river artery come only when the power of both female and male was combined. Bettany Hughes Variation One I can still recall a reoccurring dream I had around… Continue reading
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Somebody Somewhere
If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading. Lao Tzu I have always been a stumbler. I create lofty plans regarding where I want to be and what I need to do to get there only to see my journey become a series of accidents, pitfalls, switchbacks, and wrong… Continue reading
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How Old Am I
If I had to choose just one dayTo last my whole life throughIt would surely be that SundayThe day that I met you George David Weiss “How old am I?” She looked up from her book. “What?” “I said, how old am I?” “Don’t be silly. You know how old you are.” “I want you… Continue reading
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A Day of Visibility
All of us are put in boxes by our family, by our religion, by our society, our moment in history, even our own bodies. Some people have the courage to break free. Geena Rocero I have said and done far too many unkind and thoughtless things in my life. Some are long forgotten, but there… Continue reading
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Entirely Ready
I have to be composed; I have to be poised. I have to remember what my first piano teacher told me: ‘You do not touch that piano until you are ready and until they are ready to listen to you. Nina Simone It has been a few months since I wrote A Fearless and Moral… Continue reading
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The Art of No
Letting go helps us to to live in a more peaceful state of mind and helps restore our balance. It allows others to be responsible for themselves and for us to take our hands off situations that do not belong to us. This frees us from unnecessary stress. Melody Beattie In 1964, as an 8th… Continue reading
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Teenage Crash and Burn
When I was a teenager, I was an ultra late bloomer, and my mom would say it was a blessing because it means you never have to wonder if guys are only interested in you because you’ve got boobs. Anna Kendrick I recently came upon the following: A survey conducted by the Survey Center on… Continue reading
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Time Beyond, Time Without
Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides. Lao Tzu It has been said that there are five stages of grief: Denial, bargaining, depression, anger, and acceptance. Today is the second anniversary of my brother Bob’s death and since waking this morning I’ve felt every one of them to one… Continue reading
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Sought Through Prayer and Meditation: Help, Thanks, Wow
I close my eyes, then I drift away, into the magic night I softly say. A silent prayer, like dreamers do, then I fall asleep to dream my dreams of you. Roy Orbison My history with prayer has not been a good one. I was raised Catholic and rather than prayer being a means to… Continue reading
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Lasso the Moon
Wise to resolve, and patient to perform. Homer Until the pandemic put an end to it (as it did to too many traditions in my life), Linda and I loved going to the Riverview Theater for their annual holiday showing of Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life. Even though I have seen it countless times… Continue reading
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Love, It’s a Bitch
In boxing, I had a lot of fear. Fear was good. But, for the first time, in the bout with Muhammad Ali, I didn’t have any fear. I thought, ‘This is easy. This is what I’ve been waiting for’. No fear at all. No nervousness. And I lost. George Foreman The following is a semi… Continue reading
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Shine a Light
I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. Charles Dickens I am not a Christian and despite that fact that I regularly attend Sunday services at a Unitarian church, I am not anything in particular. I have a strong sense of spirituality and attempt to practice a life… Continue reading
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What Have You Done?
Each time a man or woman stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the… Continue reading
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Lifelong Learning (It’s a Family Affair)
Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. Mahatma Gandhi Like all people married as long as Linda and I have been (43 years and counting), our relationship needs the occasional tune-up to keep things moving in the right direction. This can take on many forms, but… Continue reading
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The Joy of Just Enough
Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough. Emily Dickenson It used to be that if you asked me what I wanted I would have said “everything.” It didn’t matter if I earned the right to make such a statement. I wanted what I wanted and I expected everyone to understand… Continue reading
Can You Hear Me Now 