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Living With Dogs, Back Then And Now

Ralph was groomed last week. He “said” something about it by taking off for our back field, signaling, “Deer poop! I need deer poop! I must roll in deer poop!” When he returned, wagging his newly trimmed tail to con me into giving him a biscuit, our 11-year-old dog was, shall we say, aromatic. I think he was also pleased with his svelte summer look. Ralph got his l-o-n-g black coat from his Aussie Shepherd mother. It makes him look about 20 pounds heavier than his normal 60 pounds. During a half-century of having dogs, I never had them professionally groomed, trimmed or ...

Hearing The Sound Of Nothing But The Song Of The Night On The Wind

Isn’t it amazing what you can hear when the power goes out? I was sitting outside tonight when everything went black. The air conditioners were no longer buzzing, the TVs turn off and everyone came together in the darkness, wondering what happened. The only sounds you could hear were the chirping crickets outside and a whimper from my toddler. My husband and I turned on our flashlights on our phones and searched for the candles we purchased for just such an occurrence. Of course, the votives were no where to be seen. We had to settle for three candles that hadn’t been thought of ...

Trauma Can Have Lasting Effects

Trauma is a word that has been a focus for the last several years. Trauma has a significant effect on all facets of our lives. Childhood trauma has a lasting effect on reactions, behaviors, and relationships into adulthood. Trauma is defined by the American Psychological Association (APA) as the emotional response someone has to an extremely negative event. While trauma is a normal reaction to a horrible event, the effects can be so severe that they interfere with an individual’s ability to live a normal life. In a case such as this, help may be needed to treat the stress and ...

Chautauquans Advocate Balance At Institution

Sometimes renewal movements start with what could seem like small gestures. Such as a longtime Chautauqua Institution visitor’s 2018 newspaper ad. Was it a lost-and-found ad? Sort of. Chautauqua Institution, a national treasure, can’t achieve its potential without balance - meaning diversity of thought, the diversity that should most matter in such a place. The ad’s premise was that Chautauqua’s programming had lost balance. Most Chautauqua speakers come from one side of the philosophical spectrum. Even programming’s conception can be one-sided. Consider this: ...

Would I Send My Kids To School During COVID-19?

I do not need to decide whether to send children to school during this year’s COVID pandemic. I am doddering toward age 80. My children are grown. We are not raising grandchildren due to their parents being unemployed, ill, addicted or imprisoned. We are not regularly “babysitting,” as my grandparents did for me when my own parents were both working. But what if I did need to make the decision? If I were a young parent, I would send children to school with other children. To me, the benefits of education and socialization outweigh the risks of becoming sick from the COVID ...

His Friend, Christian, Reaches Out For Help

Mason, a retired nurse practitioner, sat down for his first session in my office. If first impressions spoke, I viewed a man who looked drained. His eyes were puffy. I thought allergies or lack of sleep. His friend, Christian, had made contact with me. He was worried about his friend. He’d watched from up close and personal a friend’s marriage deteriorating before his eyes. His friend’s avoidance led Christian to reach out for help. Mason agreed to come alone. Perhaps Christian might join us at another session. Hi Mason. Thank you for coming in today. How are you doing? I believe ...