I was mostly successful in my endeavor to ignore the ceremonial changing of the guard, from well intentioned feeble to malovent tyranny, this past Monday. Rather than subject myself to the crowning of the naked emperor, I opted to nest at home with warm soup and baskets of clean laundry to fold. It was a … Continue reading Read ‘em and weep
Tag: sadness
Frozen in time
I awoke thinking about the two children who had died after falling in Washington Park’s lake. It’s impossible to know what the boy had been thinking when he ventured onto ice which was nowhere near strong enough to hold his weight. Did he know he was taking a risk? Was he perhaps laughing with nerves … Continue reading Frozen in time
Red dahlias of hope
A couple of late summers ago, Jeter and I were on our usual walk around the Normanskill Farm. We had wandered down the yellow brick road and the trail near the creek, made our way up the gravel road and looped around to where the path divided the bountiful community garden from the kill. The … Continue reading Red dahlias of hope
Starting the school year off with a bang
Just another day in America yet, somehow, since it’s the day before my students return to their classrooms after summer break, the latest school shooting in the United States is hitting me hard. Why do we tolerate this? Why do we allow our government to do nothing? Why have we given organizations like the NRA … Continue reading Starting the school year off with a bang
Death of a crusader
I learned this week of the loss of a friend from high school. Before I go further, you should know a couple of things - first I hesitated to write “friend,” because it’s a word that suggests a connection and intimacy that I wasn’t certain I should claim there had been between Gary and myself. … Continue reading Death of a crusader
The death of the future mayor
Within minutes of arriving at the neighborhood association holiday event, I had heard the terrible news about Matt Peter dying. I was at the party to take photographs of party attendees, something I do as often as I can when asked, and my task immediately became more difficult. How in the world was I going … Continue reading The death of the future mayor
Crying to Cope
More years ago than I can believe, I worked with a really sweet young man, S, at a restaurant on Lark Street. When we met he was at his best, something I didn’t know until later when I saw him at what was arguably his worst. He was clear eyed, good looking and hardworking, a … Continue reading Crying to Cope






