A neighbor, an elderly woman, who’s been through the mill caring for a husband with Alzheimer’s is referred to as a “strong woman.” I know several Maine women, well into their ‘70’s and ‘80’s, who have carved out self-sufficient rural lifestyles, including chopping their own firewood. They too are called “strong women.” [...]
Pat Taub
Good News at Last A peace treaty was signed between the Ukraine and Russia. Biden has scaled back his military budget to provide money for universal health care. Cities across the country are pledging to shift from fossil fuels to green energy. APRIL FOOLS! If only I weren’t playing a joke but reporting on what actually transpired. [...]
Pat Taub
I gaze at my beautiful grandchildren, Jane and Max, taking in their vitality, humor, and intelligence. My loving admiration turns to grief when I consider the future that awaits them: an overheated planet, storms of Biblical proportions, polluted drinking waters, deadly viruses and more. As I sit with my grief for the world Jane and Max [...]
Pat Taub
Saturday morning, NPR was playing in the background while I rummaged in my refrigerator for something to eat for breakfast. I wasn’t paying much attention until the program played an interview with Dr. Aaron Carroll, a professor of Pediatrics at Indiana University, who, for the past two years, was part of the Covid research effort. When [...]
Pat Taub
As we move into Women’s History Month, the tendency is to celebrate famous women in the arts and politics, giving short strife to those less famous women who made an indelible impression on our lives. For Women’s History Month, I’m honoring relatives, neighbors, schoolteachers, and others who took me under their wing to model courage, [...]
Pat Taub
“Grief is the price you pay for love.” Amy Bloom For a long time, as hard as I tried, I was awkward and uncomfortable in my attempts to comfort the newly grief-stricken. When a close friend or relative was hit with a death, I fulfilled my moral obligation to make contact, but no matter how often I reached out to someone who was grieving, [...]
Pat Taub
Granddaughter Jane Today my granddaughter, Jane, is 18 years old! It seems like yesterday that my son called me with the news of her birth. I was living in Key West, which made David think I could somehow access Cuban cigars for him to pass out. He knew they were illegal in the States but challenged me. I went into a few seedy bars, [...]
Pat Taub
I’m here to announce that you, the older woman, possess superpowers. I realize this may sound a little crazy because you’re used to feeling diminished through the cultural messages which define you in terms of your aging body. But you’re much more than your wrinkles, reduced flexibility, puffy tummy and gray hair. Maturity has granted [...]
Pat Taub
Key West Lucky me, I’m still enjoying my Key West break from Maine’s crappy winter punctuated by icy roads and sidewalks. Last week my youngest son paid a brief visit. We walked a lot, beached a little and ate like the locals, feasting on Cuban sandwiches, conch fritters and the ubiquitous Key Lime pie. After sampling a few pies, we [...]
Pat Taub
Several years ago, when I grew weary of my unpartnered Valentine’s Days limited to red construction paper hearts from my grandchildren or Internet offers of bargain chocolates, I decided to make a ritual of doing something special for myself on Valentine’s Day, so I wouldn’t feel left out. That first year I indulged in a longtime desire [...]
Pat Taub