My friend Peter emailed me after reading a recent opinion piece by David Brooks about the so-called midlife crisis. “The image of midlife as a time of crisis is almost the opposite of what this period of life is really about,” Peter wrote. I can’t agree enough. Midlife can be a bit disorienting and scary from time to time, but…
As my friend Bob succumbed to leukemia, I followed him closely over a period of many months. We began with an ambulatory Bob telling me, laughing, “not to be a smartass” when I hurled jokey provocations at him. We ended with me feeding him thickened apple juice through a straw, until he couldn’t even manage that. He died last…
I had the second major fall of my life last week.
The first was years ago in Barcelona. We were in the ancient part of the city. My favorite part of being a photographer is the composition, and it consumes me in the moment. Stepping onto some uneven pavement, I went down like a boneless sack of corn meal. One second I was taking pictures, the next I was lying on the . . . Read More
I have a friend. Call him Sam. He’s in his late 60s. He lives across the US, so I don’t see him that often. Our friendship has endured for years. I really like and respect him. Yet I am watching him grow angrier before my eyes. If his purpose is to teach me what NOT to do, he is succeeding brilliantly. I imagine his wife…
The prevailing stereotype of aging is that getting old comes a cluster of obnoxious behaviors: crankiness, complaining, depression, irritability and overall negativity. The reality: With old age comes greater contentment. That’s the unexpected (and, frankly, delightful) findings of psychologist Timothy Salthouse, a professor at the University of Virginia, as well as several other prominent academics, whose research is nicely summarized…
Another birthday is on approach. It will hit the landing strip of my life early next week. I’m of two minds about it. My wife never knows which one of my bimodal selves is going to pop up next: the 8-year-old imp who will ring the doorbell just as she’s getting out of the shower (late again!) 12 minutes before…
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