Magical Memoir Moments
Odyssey: Two New Stages of Life
The columnist David Broder gobsmacked me this week with these words: There used to be four common life phases: childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age. Now, there are at least six: childhood, adolescence, odyssey, adulthood, active retirement and old age. Of the new ones, the least understood is odyssey, the decade of wandering that frequently…
When Time Shall Be No More: Kalanithi and Kairos
Thinking about time after reading When Breath Becomes Air took me back to a time in childhood when I was fascinated by a wrist watch. I discovered Kairos without knowing it.
When Breath Becomes Air: On Being A Mortal Pilgrim
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi has inspired me to reflect on the role of mortality and pilgrimage as we enter the stage of life called Jubilación.
When Did You Stop Dreaming?
If your dreams have stopped . . .”Start daydreaming about the autumn of your life as much as you daydreamed about finding your perfect love when you were a teenager.”Laura Carstensen
Sprinting into Older Age: Jubilación
After eight years of writing about memoir, I’m shifting focus on my blog. My new topic is “Jubilación.” Inspired by Isabel Allende, I’ll be writing about living the “third act” of life with passion.
Grandparenting: How it Helps Us to Simplify
I’m sitting at my desk, looking out at the mountains, and thinking about speaking to more than 100 Mennonite women this Friday night at the Amigo Centre, a place I know well, not too far from Sturgis, Michigan. The subject is Recovering Simplicity, a topic that Mennonites have grappled with for a long time and…
Three Things Every Grandparent Learns Again and Every Wise Parent Knows
Today’s post was going to be about children and memoir storytelling. I had it all set up like this: The post would be the third in a series of how my grandchildren are my spiritual teachers. The first post (2011) was about learning attention and proprioception (awareness of the body) from a baby. The second…
Richard Gilbert’s Memoir Shepherd: A Masterpiece of Rumination
Did you know that there are 150 ruminant species living on earth? Sheep, goats, and cattle, however, play a special role. About 10,000 years ago they helped bring us agriculture and the familiar landscape of pastures and meadows. I learned that fact from one of my favorite guides to memoir, Richard Gilbert, whose posts and…
57 Varieties of Wisdom: Sooner or Later, We All Quote Our Mothers (and Fathers)
As I intimated in my last post, the response to my Facebook query asking for examples of sayings from parents was amazing. Fifty-seven responses in all, counting multiple entries and conversations about entries. Then my Facebook friend Linda Hoye posted a Mary Englebreit painting featuring these words: “Sooner or Later, We All Quote Our Mothers.”…
The Frugal Traveler: A Mini-Memoir
The pattern started on our honeymoon, 1969, 40 years ago. Stuart had $600 in his checking account when we got married. I spent all the money I earned that summer– the summer of my 21st birthday, the summer of Woodstock and the moon landing, and the summer of our wedding– on the wedding dress, flowers,…
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