I Am A “Real Parent”! Parental pride in their children is universal, even if one is not from Lake Wobegon (where “all the children are above average”), and as a biological parent of three sons, I too have always considered them to be wonderful. It’s natural to praise the “products” of our personal DNA and […]

I can’t believe that we are all turning eighty this year! “We” refers to a class of fifty children who graduated from our Jewish elementary school in 1951 when we were 12-13 years old. And recently, 67 years later, we octogenarians held a class reunion! Many of us were first generation children, offspring of Jewish […]

I recently visited remarkable Machu Picchu, the ancient and magically beautiful Andes mountain community constructed some 500 years ago for the leader of the then-thriving Incan Empire. Many exquisitely preserved walls of buildings still stand in this breath-taking setting atop the steep slopes of the Peruvian Andes. The entire site is ethereal, evoking feelings of awe […]

Without warning, and out of the blue, I’ve just succumbed to a terrible flu… Malaise, fever, cough and fatigue, have pushed me way out of my league, Have affected my outlook and my mood, I’ve become dour, cantankerous, even rude… I deeply abhor this oppressive crud, which feels like oozing, trapping mud, Suffocating and asphyxiating me, overwhelming […]

“I Am Not An Elitist! (Or Am I?)”   ‘Elitism’ has become a “dirty word,” at least among some people who feel that elites are despicable. I hereby declare that “I am not an Elitist” (…or am I?) As I write this self-serving statement, I’m reminded of the words, “I am Not a Crook!” spoken by Richard Nixon […]

You remember “role models,” don’t you? You know, those people we looked up to when we were younger, whom we aspired to be like, and possibly now, whom we want our children to emulate? Some might think that people would agree on who could be role models for us ‘ordinary people,’ that we’d have similar ideas about […]