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Entrust your pain to the community
A few months ago, I read this essay called: “Two Lessons learned from this Ancient Piece that Changed My Life” written by Sharon Brous who is a Rabbi. This is an excerpt from The New York Times. “A somewhat obscure text called the Mishnah, which is a very old Jewish legal document has been my unlikely teacher and guide for the past many years, and my north star. The Mishnah gave hope to all in need as they circled the Temple of Jerusalem. For those in pain, they would turn to the left and the ones giving care and compassion would turn to the right. They would meet in the…
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Sally, forever friends
Sally Hamilton, May 4, 1944 – June 26, 2022 Standing erect, Sally always moved confidently through life. She was educated and successful, and generous to others. Each person received the benefit of her kindness. She was fiercely independent, walking by herself for the first day of school while her mother followed secretly behind. We travelled together on some beautiful trips. A few notable differences arose in our lifestyles. I woke early and she slept late. The best trip was a seven-day “forced march,” as we called it, to Rome, Tuscany, Florence, and Venice. We had guides meeting us every morning after breakfast to take us to the Coliseum, the Vatican,…
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Things to be sure about —
Throughout this time of isolation, I have had my fair share of Netflix and Amazon Prime shows watched. Now I have stopped the binging and am reading more about nature, fiction, and keeping active biking, volunteering with animals and singing. It is evident from the shows I indulged in that no matter how imperfect families can be, the “hold” which is the love that a family has can be strong in the midst of change. My extended family stretches from PA, to NJ, upstate NY, and WA. state, but it is knit not only by DNA, but also common traits and interests. It is also bound by the beliefs and…
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RIP Dapper Dan
I got home the other day from grocery shopping — you know the kind we are used to doing now, mask on and six feet apart. Things went well until I got a call from my neighbor Amanda. “I’ve got very bad news,” she said. My heart froze. I said, “Nothing has happened to Dapper Dan, I hope?” But our beloved neighborhood cat that I gave lodging to had been hit by a car. He was gone. Shock to the psyche: Whatever adrenaline courses through ones’s life system, for me, it was shock rather than grief. I couldn’t fully imagine why and how it had happened. For me, he continued…
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Hello in There: a Reflection
Here’s where we were a year ago: As I write this the “USNS Comfort” is making its way up the Hudson River to dock in New York City. This is a time when our swords have been beaten into pruning hooks– instruments for trimming back, nurturing and growth. For this one moment, we are fighting a war not against others, but against ourselves. This is a time when we get together by being alone, when we sing in isolation with hundreds of people — virtually. There is some happiness in here. We continue to sing, because we are in a sort of captivity and it is all we can do.…
