While I’m an elder, I hadn’t given a lot of thought to dying, that is until my brother, who’s 20 months younger, announced in...
Thinking About Death
While I’m an elder, I hadn’t given a lot of thought to dying, that is until my brother, who’s 20 months younger, announced in a recent late-night phone call that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. (To preserve my brother’s [...]
Pat Taub
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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