I’ve always found the phrase, “All good things must come to an end” to be spectacularly inaccurate. It’s so shortsighted. So half glass empty. To my way of thinking, all good things (morph and change though they may) tend to beget more goodness. I’m acutely aware of such in young motherhood, but less so when…
Category: Newspaper Columns
The words of affirmation that matter most
Many moons ago, I learned that my “love language” – the third of five identified in Gary Chapman’s book – is unequivocally and clearly, words of affirmation. While the other four languages, quality time, acts of service, gifts and physical touch have their own special meaning in my life, what really means the most to…
From babies to retirement bliss – a tribute to Richard S. Cybulsky, M.D.
This month, while families are focused on the matriarchs in their lives in celebration of Mother’s Day, I will pay tribute to my Dad. On May 15, after delivering nearly 4,500 babies, spending 962 weekends on call, and managing 37 years of practice, Dr. Richard S. Cybulsky, Ob/Gyn, will close the doors of Brookwood Hospital’s…
All about the month of May, just like The Temptations say…
As foretold by The Temptations in 1964, it really is all about the month of May. Now that April has served its pollenated purpose, drenching us along the way with downpours that even the cutest pair of wellies can’t handle, the fourth month of the year can just peace on out of here. Onto the…
Thank you, John Mellencamp
Two weeks ago, from the orchestra section vantage point of the BJCC Concert Hall, Rett and I shared one of those kindred married moments, when your spouse turns to you and says out the loud the very same thing you were just thinking. “This music means more to me now,” he said, squeezing my hand…
For the love of my littlest Valentines
Love it or loathe it, Valentine’s Day season is once again staring us in the face (in case you hadn’t noticed the explosion of pink and red and all things chocolate-y at a grocer near you). I’m a girly girl, and have always felt the thrill of being a certain someone’s sweetheart when a spray…
2015 – The Year of the Daily Do-over
As clichéd as the New Year’s Resolution has become, I still like the tradition. I like the clean slate, unblemished by the behaviors we’ve earnestly tried to leave in the year we just bid farewell. Funny thing, though. Darn if it isn’t even February before I’ve managed to mar up that clean slate something awful….
Simple and stress-free: my kind of holiday
Recently, while waiting for a preschool holiday program to begin, my mom sat patiently beside me as I fired off work emails left and right. After reading one particular email that left me feeling rather cross, I leaned over to her and vented, “People don’t seem to value the words ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ much…
This Turkey Day, I’m Thankful for “Sunscreen”
Three years before Winston Groom delivered the commencement address at my college graduation, one Mary Schmich published the speech I wish I’d heard that day. After appearing in the June 1, 1997 issue of the Chicago Tribune, Schmich’s essay struck a chord so profound that the piece eventually caught the attention of Australian film director…
October 2014 Editor’s Note
“We are just so busy!” It’s an innocent enough statement, legitimately driven by real obligations and commitments. But there is a point when “so busy!” becomes a state of mind, and ultimately, an excuse. A cousin phrase is one I’m guilty of saying daily: “I don’t have time.” You know it’s a tired line when…