23

“How you doing?” I asked my Mom this question at the beginning of almost every call, or visit, and her answer was always the same. “I’m fine,” even in her final days. This was not a conversation, it was a pattern, our pattern. I knew she was not fine. She knew she was not fine. […]

8

  Can I tell you about my day? Good, because if I don’t let it out it’s going to escape in some other form, and at my age excessive flatulence is unbecoming. By midday I had written extra strength Tylenol on the grocery list three times. Most of you will agree, sheltering in place is […]

15

Have you ever played with a pill bug? You know the ones that curl up into a ball and you can roll them around the palm of your hand. I loved them as a kid, they seemed mysterious, and the idea that they could instantly create this protective shell was intriguing to my younger self. […]

14

Standing in front of Mom’s beautifully organized desk, I find myself unfolding a receipt for a dance class at the local retirement center, it’s country western, and my first desperate thought is can she get her money back? I know, it’s trifling, but honest. This is my go-to defense, focus on the trival, avoid painful […]