GUEST POST by MICHAEL STEINMAN Imagine you’ve had a visible medical scare: a dermatologist has carved a chunk out of your forehead,...
Coping with Loneliness
“I do pretty well living alone, but on days when I crave companionship, it becomes depressing.” “I’m too embarrassed to reach out to friends when I’m feeling lonely.” “My family sees me as a strong woman, so they don’t realize I get lonely and would like them to contact me more.” “I wish there were places, other [...]
Pat Taub
It’s Not Complicated
GUEST POST by MARY DUNN How did we come to live in this time where genocide is accepted, defended, and cheered? Many dissuade debating this incredibly important issue claiming it’s “complicated”. No, really, it’s not. Every religion teaches us to love our neighbor, take in the stranger, and certainly thou shall not kill. But here [...]
Pat Taub
Owning Your Voice
My class of “Women and Aging,” got into a lively discussion for maximizing our later years. After the class one member dashed off a group email apologizing for “interrupting and talking too much.” Her email was promptly followed by another class member who echoed the same regret along with her apology. A little later a third [...]
Pat Taub
Competitive Grandparenting
GUEST POST By ANONYMOUS* In a clear sign of the sickness engendered by the long reign of patriarchy in Western culture, grandparenting is now seen as a competitive rather than collaborative endeavor. Despite research confirming the long-held notion that children with at least one grandmother alive are far more likely to thrive than those without [...]
Pat Taub
The Real Story of Witches
The saying, “History is written by the winners, “ applies to the story we’ve been told about witches as ugly, evil creatures. Since today is Halloween, it’s the perfect time to set the record straight on witches. We have to travel back to the 1500’s in Western Europe, when women healers and midwives played a central role in village [...]
Pat Taub
Give Peace A Chance
In our war-torn universe I long for the world to embrace John Lennon’s famous lyrics, “Give peace a chance.” But peace is off the table when it comes to Gaza, whose homes, hospitals, and schools are being bombed around the clock, drawing comparisons to the fire-bombing of Dresden during WW ll. On top of this, water, food, fuel, and electricity [...]
Pat Taub
“Please Tell Our Story. Please Pray for Us.” Dr. Jehad Hasanain
GUEST POST BY SALLY BOWDEN-SCHAIBLE Dr. Jehad Hasanain is a friend and has been for nearly five years. Jehad is an emergency room physician with a young family and has lived in Gaza all his life. For a week now, he has been sending messages whenever he can, describing the horrors of death, injuries, displacement. Providing humanitarian [...]
Pat Taub
My Picks for Fall Reads
Global warming delivered a protracted summer that lasted until this weekend when the temperatures dropped into the autumn range, reminding me it was time to compose the WOW fall reading list. For me, fall reading has to be accompanied by a fire in the fireplace, a cup of Earl Gray and an oversized comfy sweater. Here are my picks for [...]
Pat Taub
“I Hate Being Old!”
Currently I’m teaching the course, “Women and Aging” at Portland, Maine’s senior college. The first day, as we went around the room introducing ourselves, one woman defiantly exclaimed, “I hate being old. I hate my lined face. I hate not being able to move as well as I once did. I hate being too old to date because men my age [...]
Pat Taub
Autumn Is My New Year
While New Year’s Eve is the traditional time for making resolutions, autumn is my new year. Autumn’s entry into the darkness of winter beckons me to soul-search and reset my compass for the coming year. This call is reinforced by having a fall birthday–one I proudly share with Jimmy Carter. This year I decided to do more than [...]
Pat Taub