Category Archives: Aging

I know I was a handful: scared my mom and stunned my dad with willfulness and heat. Wicked-bright and booming like a bomb, I overfilled our den. I wasn’t sweet and patient. I defied the girl-police. I had too many … Continue reading →

I feel a little altered, and it’s good. I’m safe at home without a task that calls. There’s gentle rain outside to darken wood and speckle glass, and as the moisture falls the tense contractions in my limbs unfold. I … Continue reading →

I’m stunned by the mortality of men I used to love. They ought to stay alive, although I never thought I’d see again the three no longer breathing of the five significant to me as partners: first and last and … Continue reading →

When we were young we smoked a ton of weed. We bought it by the kilo around here. It didn’t lead to heroin or speed addiction. Alcoholics don’t use beer as gateway drinks, and while we smoked a lot, and … Continue reading →

I woke today with normal energy. I wrote and took my morning exercise while reading and with coffee next to me. I showered then and dashed off quick replies to texts from family. And when I looked for other tasks, … Continue reading →

A fortnight after Christmas, it’s my turn. Exactly one week after New Year’s day, I can’t avoid my birthday. Sure I yearn for youthful vigor, and I loathe the lay of lines around my mouth and squinting eyes, but passion … Continue reading →

My father wanted me to exercise. He called me sedentary, and made fun of me determining to train my eyes on books and paper, when I ought to run around the high school track across the street. I loved my … Continue reading →

I worried so when I was young, I built my frets to threats against all inner peace. While other Jews were specialists at guilt, I nurtured my anxiety’s increase. Now doubtless I’ve surpassed my mother’s skill, envisioning the ways things … Continue reading →