Family –the Heart of a Home
If you’ve read my memoir, Wandering …a long way past the past, you may recall that my relationship with my now-deceased mother was not particularly a loving one ‘nor a healthy one. In my book, I did not mention much in the way of positive reminiscences, as there weren’t many. However, there was a special […]
Transcending Pain
My blogs end with the caption “Enjoy the passage of time.” For most of us, enjoying the passage of time is usually easier when things are pleasant. Appreciating a sunrise after a good night’s sleep. Feeling safe and secure. Delighting in going out for dinner with friends. Grateful for the kindness someone showed us. A […]
Sudoku
Last year I participated in a neuroscience workshop regarding how yoga affects the brain. I learned that the natural aging of the brain accelerates between the ages of 70-80 and increases significantly after 80. Fluid cognition, such as remembering names or visual attention, declines more quickly than crystallized cognition like long-term memories or cultural norms. […]
Always Learning
I learned a lot in 2023. I learned how to play pickleball and American Mah Jongg, though I am quite a beginner in both. I learned how to prepare delicious gluten-free meals with the help of oat flour, a cup of patience, and heaping tablespoons of trial-and-error experiments. I learned that I must work out […]
Old-Growth Forests
These days most of the hikes I go on are in second-growth forests, some more mature than others but often not in America’s original forests. However, recently I went on a hike in a Pacific Northwest old-growth forest with trees 8-10’ in diameter and 200-300’ high. Dendrologists (people who study trees) believe these trees are […]
Sunrises and the Big Picture
Each morning the sun rises in the eastern sky. Sometimes with a blast of brilliant color: scarlet red, marigold orange, deep purple, and strokes of bright yellow. Other times, with just a hint of violet or buttery beige. This morning I was treated to a blast of color I had not seen in months. Still […]
Thankful for my Half Cup
When I go out for dinner, I usually read the whole menu to discover what I might want to eat. My family members and friends usually have no problem deciding what they want. My husband finds his selection right away. Not me. I use the process of elimination. No, I don’t want that or that […]
The North Star
Polaris, or the North Star, is in the same location in the northern hemisphere every night from dusk to dawn, neither rising nor setting, and is also the brightest star in the sky. It symbolizes direction, guidance, stability, and purpose. In Norse folklore, the North Star was at the end of a spike around which […]
No Man is an Island
In the BBC Planet Earth documentary series, there is an episode about a group of fish called “schooling fish” swimming together to confuse predators. The stalker, like a shark, can’t pick out an individual fish, and therefore, the chances of the whole group getting away are greatly increased. Herring are among the more spectacular schooling […]
Downsizing
Downsizing usually means reducing in size, the process of replacing something larger with something smaller, or in the financial world when companies cut the workforce to diminish operating costs. I’ve used this word a lot in the last several months. For instance, to explain to my friends why I moved, “Oh, we’re just downsizing.” We […]
A Big Heart
Long ago Greek philosophers agreed that human emotions, like love and fear, were linked to the heart. Plato (429 – 347 B.C.E.) argued that the chest was at the center of love and Aristotle expanded it further to expound that the human heart was the seat of spiritual and mental functions. We now know that […]
Moving
Webster’s definition of moving is to change one’s residence or location. But it also can mean in motion –a fast-moving river or producing a strong emotion –an unforgettable and moving book. Or being mobile –she was moving so quickly I hardly saw her. It’s interesting that the same word used to describe changing your residence […]
Home
Home is defined as a place where one lives permanently or semi-permanently and can be a fully or semi-sheltered space with both exterior and interior aspects. Other meanings include the intangible feeling one gets in a location, a sense of peace from loved ones, or an environment where one feels most comfortable, loved, and protected; […]
Good Fortune, Bad Fortune
Many are familiar with the Chinese parable about good and bad fortune. In summary, the folktale tells the story of a poor Chinese farmer who lost his horse. All his neighbors offered their condolences, “Oh, what bad luck”. The farmer simply said, “Maybe”. Shortly after, the horse returned with a herd of horses. The neighbors […]
Artificial Intelligence
AI or artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines or software, the opposite of the intelligence of human beings or animals. Cyborgs exist only in fiction, but the concept is becoming more and more likely as scientific research makes significant progress with each passing year. I can hardly keep up with it. Social media changes […]
