Nov 13The Arrogance of IgnoranceYears ago — like twenty or more — I read about a survey given to Harvard students. It was about a range of common knowledge kinds of questions. My favorite question/response: What is Chernobyl? The answer came back just as you might have expected: Cher’s first name. Now let’s give…Israel Palestine Conflict6 min readIsrael Palestine Conflict6 min read
Oct 26Nazis Who Speak Arabic & the People Who Love ThemThese past weeks have been a nonstop reel of anguish, horror, devastation, sorrow, and anger. All on repeat. For those of us with direct connections to Israel–family, friends, colleagues, etc. who live and work there–all of these emotions have been felt in even sharper relief. October 7, 2023 is now…Israel Palestine Conflict4 min readIsrael Palestine Conflict4 min read
Sep 26When the Easiest Thing is Really the HardestLast spring, I brought my autistic son to a special holiday service for young people with disabilities. I’d brought him several times in the past, and it’s truly the only place I’ve ever felt any kind of real spiritual connection. Or perhaps even the possibility of the presence of God…Kindness3 min readKindness3 min read
Jul 17Birthday Blues & BlundersI’m not one for birthday celebrations. I had parties when I was a kid, but nothing major. No sweet sixteen or anything like it. I came to resent the circus that was the birthday parties for my kids and their friends, the fretting over location/activity/party favors, etc. etc. Times three…Trauma5 min readTrauma5 min read
Jun 3Flounder. It’s not just a fish.Maybe I should just leave the title, and not fill in the details. That’s probably the wiser course. But especially in recent years, taking the “wiser course,” whatever that is, has eluded me. I was thinking today how badly one of the only things I ever wanted out of life…Depression4 min readDepression4 min read
May 23Read, Write, Run. RepeatI was thinking this morning about the core components of my life, at least in its more recent iteration. I’ve struggled A LOT with whether and how I’m productive, both within my nuclear family and more broadly in the world. I’ve been deeply disappointed in how un-full my days often…Reading6 min readReading6 min read
Apr 17The Storm Before the CalmThere are days when the chaos of our lives is my undoing, when it leaves me just wrung out and wondering how much more I can absorb or withstand. But then something happens that is urgent and concerning, and I just kick into the adrenaline overdrive that has me responding…Autism4 min readAutism4 min read
Feb 8Sleep Gurus and Food FascistsSleep Gurus and Food Fascists I was reading an article recently about various techniques to ensure better sleep. To be honest, I mostly scanned it, because I was too tired to read it closely. I did take away a bunch of important lessons, however, about the whys and hows of…Parenting2 min readParenting2 min read
Jan 22Keeping Despair at BayKeeping Despair at Bay Life’s funny, isn’t it? I typed the title of these latest musings while wearing a t-shirt telling me to Practice Gratitude, a gift from my daughter, whose rage has kept her from speaking to me the past couple of days. There’s a part of me that…Parenting2 min readParenting2 min read
Dec 12, 2022Letter to an Angry Black GirlIt might seem incredibly provocative to use this title in any piece, especially one written by a white woman. But that is literally what this is. And that’s literally who she was, at a particular moment in time when our paths crossed. I was walking home from the subway with…Disability5 min readDisability5 min read
