Adversity reveals one’s character during these abnormal times. Togetherness, 24/7, as well as solitary confinement, gives rise to creativity and new ways to show love. Then there are the hoarders, the complainers, the blamers. Our country is on a collective timeout and what a collection we are. Each of us is a composite of good […]
The tragic deaths of Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others in a helicopter crash felt intimate to me, though I do not follow sports, nor have I ever met them. Yet imagining the sudden loss of a father and daughter is a dread I can feel in my bones. Also, all of […]
The heroes of Thanksgiving are the family cooks. They chop, slice, dice and roast. Like mathematicians, they figure out how to stagger five roasting pans over eight hours using one oven. They make it look so easy, greeting guests with a breezy, “Come on in!” even as they tick off a mental to-do list with […]
(Photo by Suzette Martinez Standring, Houghton’s Pond, Milton, MA) Thanksgiving celebrates togetherness and family feasting, and perhaps, it also calls for restraint. I am not talking about the groaning buffet and ten desserts. I am talking about not talking about hot button issues. Live for the greater good and show mercy to the poor cook […]
On Veterans Day, the enormity of war speaks. Acres of marble crosses face modern Manila in the Philippines, forever recalling the sacrifices made by American soldiers and Filipino allies during World War II. I was born in the U.S. of Filipino ancestry, and this is a “roots” trip for me. One powerful stop was the […]