The woman seated in the retirement center’s lounge was waiting for the box lunch she’d ordered. With nothing to entertain her, she studied the carpet beneath her feet as if to find a message in the pattern. For the last year, the pandemic has forced residents to live distant from

The thief was furious when he found a 4-year-old child strapped into the back seat of the car he’d stolen.  His response was to slam on the brakes and reverse direction.  Finding the mother newly emerged from the grocery store with a gallon of milk, he scolded her for leaving her

A friend at the retirement center sat down beside me one afternoon in the temporary lounge that management had arranged, its chairs set 6 feet apart.  It’s a place where residents are supposed to carry on conversations while masked. Despite her face covering, I heard a sigh as she

The Biden-Trump election is over but feelings remain high.  Donald Trump diehards believe the President’s defeat will be reversed in the courts. Experts disagree. Even members of his family are urging Trump to concede.  Even so, some of my Facebook friends continue to lay out argu

The 2020 election is probably one of the most strange in American history.  We have a president whom some experts believe is mentally ill and who is so desperate to win reelection, he refuses to disavow support from QAnon,  a cult-like group that believes “deep state” officials

Despite the misinformation he’s allowed to spread on Facebook,  I admire Mark Zuckerberg’s intention to create a global community that can promote human understanding. To foresee the many ways his dream could be misused would require the powers of Nostradamus, so I don’t hold h

A friend sent me an email this morning to say that in honor of the times in which we live, she was writing a new version of the Jabberwock.  I replied to her post as follows: “I woke up today with a new first stanza of the poem tumbling in my head.” For those who have yet to meet

Here’s what I’d like to know: after the impeachment trial, why did Donald Trump’s favorability numbers rise in opinion polls? The uptick occurred not only among Republicans but also among independent voters. I find that last bit of information, worrying, and I’m not alone.  O

I may have told this story before, but while in public office and after a day of fierce debate on social policy, I stepped down from my dais and stormed into my office with a staff member following in my wake.  My voice as dripping with incredulity as I turned to complain to that you

Is America becoming more conservative or more liberal? That depends upon how you read the demographics.  Four out of five Americans live in urban areas, (“Notes” The Week, August 17/24, 2018, pg. 16), and if your believe  a report in the Washington Post, urban areas tend to vote