When I was four years old, an angel left me my very own Christmas tree. I lay on a soft twin bed, tucked in the corner of a wood-paneled...

I met “The Roses Man” when I was  5 or 6 years old, attending Franklin Elementary School in East Orange, New Jersey. I was freshly...

When I was five, my heaven was a tiny dusty theater at Upsala College in East Orange, New Jersey. My father taught music history there....

It crept in like a low fog, so lightly that I didn’t notice it beginning to swirl around me. A vague unease, a weighty sigh. The sun...

What do you do when your worst fear actually happens?

My mother used to tell me, “You're too sensitive.” It was a repeated refrain, deployed when I cried too long or hurt too much. She said...

At the end of a weary work week, I sprawled on the couch ready to watch a movie. I wanted to be entertained by someone else’s problems...

(Part 5 in the series Choosing More Surgery) I spoke to a psychic two weeks before my recent operations. The psychic is a friend, an...

(Part 4 in the series Choosing More Surgery) I have always loved “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” I identify with Dorothy in The Wizard of...

(This is Part 3 in the series "Choosing More Surgery." See here for Part 1 and here for Part 2) “How are you doing today?” asked my...

(For Part I of this series, click here) “You need to make friends with it,” advised my surgeon. She smiled at me, her long straight...

“Your test results were negative.” This call was welcome news from my doctor, but also surprising. I had seen Dr. Jones (not his real...

by Samuel Moore-Sobel, guest blogger (I am honored to host Samuel Moore-Sobel, as guest writer for this blog. You can learn more about...

A year ago, I sat eating lunch with my new friend, Betsy. We met when our kids performed in high school theater together. We both...