My first thought when my oldest daughter told me she was expecting my first grandchild was “at last!” I was 64 years old, with four adult children more focused on their careers than on starting families. Most of my friends were already grandparents…

I never expected a simple trip to buy vegetables to change my life, but it did. I met Maria at the Santa Cruz Farmer’s Market where she was offering five-minute massages. My body hurt that day, as it always did. Figuring I had nothing to lose…

“When will Mommy come, Grandma?” my granddaughter used to ask several times a day when she was little. At first, I assumed she missed her mother. I’m sure that was true some of the time, but usually she didn’t seem sad…

Over Christmas, I spent two weeks at my son’s home in southern California. We had taken precautions; everyone had tested negative, the nanny and the housekeeper were given two weeks off, and I drove door to door with only one stop…

Kismet is lying on my feet. Since the pandemic, that is her favorite place to be while I write. My study is the warmest room in the house, and for most of her 10 years of life my companion Border Collie has spent the daylight hours

Thanksgiving is traditionally celebrated with large family gatherings. We eat communally prepared feasts, share family stories, and spend hours indoors playing games, working puzzles, and watching televised…

In this time of shelter-in-place, many of us have turned to gardening, baking, or writing to help us stay focused and grounded. I have done all of those things, but mostly I write. Writing is how I make meaning out of seemingly meaningless…

Once upon a time I lived on 10 acres, and we grew all our own vegetables. Then I moved into town, where I built raised beds and grew corn, tomatoes, salad veggies, and squash. Now I am retired, and I live in a tiny house by the seaside…

After a very emotional and fast-moving turn of events, my partner of 18 years was bundled into a car by his concerned daughter, and I watched them drive away, feeling very alone.  Read More

Do you ever wake up feeling like you haven’t slept all night or with joints that hurt as you struggle out of bed? Me too.

These discomforts may be caused by ‘inflammaging’, chronic low-grade inflammation common in older adults, even in the absence of infection. Other possible symptoms of inflammaging are fatigue, a low fever, abdominal and/or chest pain. Read More