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Category Archives: Essays
For the Holidays, the Gift of Self-Care
From the NYT: The Buddhist monk Haemin Sunim remembers the moment he discovered the power of self-care. He was a frustrated graduate student when a trusted friend told him the solution was to “be good to yourself first — then … Continue reading
Reach out, listen, be patient. Good arguments can stop extremism
From Aeon: Many of my best friends think that some of my deeply held beliefs about important issues are obviously false or even nonsense. Sometimes, they tell me so to my face. How can we still be friends? Part of … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Race, Social justice
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In praise of Washington insiders by David Brooks
Let me tell you a secret. The public buildings of Washington are filled with very good people working hard for low pay and the public good. There are thousands of them and they are very much like the Foreign Service … Continue reading
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The upside of laziness
From Aeon: We are being lazy if there’s something that we ought to do but are reluctant to do because of the effort involved. We do it badly, or do something less strenuous or less boring, or just remain idle. … Continue reading
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A Mysterious Journey into the Darkness
by Ann Milam The train screeches to a sudden jolting stop. “What’s happening?” I exclaim. “We’re nowhere near a town!” Looking out the small window over my narrow bunk, I see only darkness in the Rajasthan desert in India. It’s … Continue reading
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The Lost & Found Tale of a Valuable Pigeon
By Lorraine Wascher Woods During our February snowstorm, the Schullers had a handsome pigeon trapped on their balcony for three days. Not just any pigeon; it turns out he was a specially bred and valuable racing pigeon. Nichole Griepentrog (Skyline … Continue reading
Posted in environment, Essays, In the Neighborhood
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Why are some people left handed
I’m a pure rightie but in my family there are lefties and some with traits of both. One of my sons throws right in baseball, bats left and in soccer, kicks left. Gordon G sends along this interesting video essay. … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, History, Science and Technology
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Six Word Stories!
By Ann Milam Ernest Hemingway’s award-winning story was featured in our last Bulletin. Sitting in the Algonquin Hotel bar, friends bet Ernest Hemingway that he couldn’t write a story in only six words that would make them cry. With ten … Continue reading
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September 11, 2001
By Mary Jane Francis Streaming, screaming, careening thru the streets… It was unimaginable. Truly, un-imaginable! Nothing in my imagination even came close to what I would see later on a large screen TV in the middle of the night. … Continue reading
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The Trick to Life Is to Keep Moving
By Devi Lockwood in the NYT For many people, roommates and romances are the most important relationships of their late teens and early 20s. For me it was Cora Brooks, a poet and activist 51 years my senior. She taught me … Continue reading
Posted in Advocacy, Aging Sites, end of life, Essays
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What do you see in the park?
Thanks to Margarete B & Gordon G. Two strangers “see” together.
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The smartest person you may have never heard of.
Some geniuses go through life without recognition. C.S. Peirce is an example of an incredible mind that is now being discovered in relatively buried archives at Harvard.
National Talk in an Elevator Day!
Thanks to Lorraine Woods for this note. It seems to me that the elevator talk a Skyline is a real plus in socialization. Are we a national model? It’s National Talk in an Elevator Day. Why do you need to know … Continue reading
Posted in environment, Essays, happiness, Health
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Mid-Brexit, Britons Pause to Debate What Really Matters: Tea
LONDON — Controversy over soccer star Alex Morgan’s tea-drinking World Cup victory dance has died down, but it has reignited debate among readers of The Times of London, Britain’s second-starchiest daily newspaper, over a matter that has long troubled the British people: … Continue reading
Childrens’s answers to the great questions
Posted in Essays, happiness, Philosophy, Religion
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Do we get real mail anymore?
Ed note: Do we write letters anymore? Is there a difference between email and real mail? It seems to me that letters carry more weight. They can’t be deleted with a click. They can be found later in our real … Continue reading
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A visitor in the operating room
It was Trevor’s first weekend to relax since moving to Seattle. He was out in a park walking Bailey, his year old lab, when his pager unexpectedly beeped. He called in to the operating room office, where the frantic head … Continue reading
The most, the coldest, the least, etc. – strange facts
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The Racial Reckoning Comes – by David Brooks
From the NYT: When I was a boy I was taught a certain story about America. This was the land of opportunity. Immigrants came to this land and found an open field and a fair chance to pursue their dreams. … Continue reading
Love letters to strangers
Ed note: Are you still writing notes and letters? I hope so. This “old school” way of saying thanks, sorry or condolences is by far the best. It’s also a craft – one that has its own healing power.
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It’s time for national service
Ed Note: One of the problems of youth is that they don’t have enough exposure to those different from themselves. A sense of entitlement is often attributed to the millenials. Service when we are young in the Military, Peace Corps … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Law, Military, Social justice, Volunteering
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As Afghanistan peace talks progress, WA continues to suffer losses in America’s longest war
For 18 years Joint Base Lewis-McChord has played an essential role in a war that has been forgotten by many Americans. by Kevin Knodell from Crosscut / May 27, 2019 Last week President Donald Trump’s envoy to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, briefed U.S. senators in a classified meeting. Khalilzad, … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Remembrances, Social justice, War
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You’re simply not that big a deal: now isn’t that a relief?
Melissa Dahl is editor of New Yorkmagazine’s Science of Us, and the author of Cringeworthy: A Theory of Awkwardness (2018). She lives in New York. From Aeon: There is a meme that speaks directly to the hearts and minds of the overly self-conscious. … Continue reading
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If anyone can see the morally unthinkable online, what then?
Ed note: Can we ever “unsee” or “unhear” things that we wish we hadn’t seen or heard? This can happen far too easily on the internet where live streaming a terrorist event can happen or when one trips over porn … Continue reading
Posted in Essays, Uncategorized
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