Last night I spoke at an event inside grand old St. Bart’s on 50th and Park. Afterwards I began meandering and (though I hadn’t planned to) eventually walked the entire way home, about four miles. It was winter, a bit blustery, stimulating; the streets weren’t crowded, late-working folks were leaving work or heading somewhere, hurrying decisively, criss-crossing to and fro(…)
Is it better to remember or better to forget? As I grow old, nature-enduced forgetfulness will make that decision for me. In small ways it’s already doing so and I really don’t mind. Though I’ve published many Holocaust-related books, I no longer read everything new that appears on the Shoah, WWII, Anne Frank, and no longer(…)
The instructions were: Pack lunch/dinner and snacks and bring water Make sure you are hydrated Get a good nights sleep the night before No back-packs or bags – exception: 1 clear bag 12 x 12 x 6 gallon, one bag 8 x 6 x 4 Bring cash Bring credit card Bring cell phone battery back-up Bring(…)
The Snow Man One must have a mind of winter To regard the frost and the boughs Of the pine-trees crusted with snow; And have been cold a long time To behold the junipers shagged with ice, The spruces rough in the distant glitter Of the January sun; and not to think Of any(…)
Excerpt from “Lost and Found”* published in 2010 as part of the Cahier Series by AUP Press, Paris, France and Sylph Editions, UK in honor of what would have been my dear Aunt Dorothy’s 100th birthday: Both sets of double sheets are gone from the white linen trunk. The door to the little freezer compartment(…)
My friend Leslie added a comment to a recent [12/22] post that read: For many species and individuals the world has ended already. Everything that has a beginning has an ending, Make your peace with that and all is well. (Buddha) It’s the circle of life. But how will it end? The universe is very innovative … [[Drawing by Devis(…)
I first read Czeslaw Milosz while hiding out in Krynica spa in southern Poland at a hotel called Paradiso. I read him again now while hiding out on the twelfth floor – 12F. Milosz encountered strong headwinds through his long life, especially during the Warsaw years. He wouldn’t mind, I’m sure, if I borrow from the ballast he acquired(…)
Where holiday cards are going in the USA this year: Massachusetts, California, Washington, Vermont, New York, Georgia, New Mexico, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Louisiana, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Minnesota, Illinois, West Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Maine, New Jersey. Abroad: The Netherlands, Greece, Bulgaria, Israel, England, Canada, Scotland, Norway, Switzerland, Ireland, Germany, France, Morocco, Croatia, Australia, Thailand, Sweden.(…)
Have been speechless since the election. All wherewithal has drained out through the soles of my feet. Just want to get under the covers: K.M. wrote: “He acted beyond badly, said things that were beyond repugnant and was thus rewarded. That feels so deeply destabilizing to me. My only solace is that in times of strife and(…)
