Putting Things Into Perspective
With the passing of our beloved Queen, an icon of selfless dedication we fondly thought would go on for much longer than her 96 years, mortality is on the minds…
mortality
Musings on Cats and Philosophers
British philosopher John Gray thinks cats can “often teach us much more about living the good life than philosophy ever could.” As a lifetime cat owner, I can vouch for…
Back to Montaigne
When I find myself in times of trouble, I go back to read Montaigne. Seeking words of wisdom, Read some more… (to the tune of Let It Be, with apologies…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 6
I’m sitting here, on my back deck, in the late Friday afternoon, beside Susan, trying to take stock of my life over a glass of wine, and read a bit…
The Cancer Diaries Part 1
I should have started this a while ago. Perhaps when I received the first news something as wrong. But it took a while to really sink in. And then it…
Reflections
Lately I’ve been thinking about fragility. About how we are all connected by caring and how very, very lucky I am to be alive. It feels almost accidental. The images…
I Thought I Would Be OK, But I’m Not
My Mom passed away on August 16th at the age of 96. Ninety-six is a big number and a lot of years to live. When Mom reminisced about skiing down…
MINDFUL PHOTOGRAPHY FOR THE CAREGIVER
In photography, mindfulness is like observing something for the first time, even though you may have looked at it a thousand times before. For example, when you’ve been away from…
Our Role in The Circle of Life: What’s Your Title?
Over the holidays this year, I’ve been thinking a lot about birth, mortality and all that’s in between. I guess you’d say, I’ve been pondering the circle of life and…
The last walk
“You have to go to the pound. They have a Sheltie there.” Susan called me from work, her voice urgent. One of her clients had told her a Sheltie –…
What I’ve Learned About Myself Caring For My Mom
For many years I was the primary caregiver in our family for our son who has severe disabilities. Nicholas needed a lot of therapy and was often ill enough to…
What I’ve Learned About Myself Caring For My Mom
For many years I was the primary caregiver in our family for our son who has severe disabilities. Nicholas needed a lot of therapy and was often ill enough to…
A Thought for Will Shakespeare on the 23rd of April, 2016
Four hundred years ago today, Old Will Did shuffle off his mortal coil; itself, The one young Hamlet noted with a chill, That can’t be sidestepped by collected wealth. The…
Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me…
Turning 64, as in the 1967 Beatles’ song, once seemed so distant that it it was as remote as flying cars and jet packs. By the time I reached that…
Goodbye, Cleo
Cleo was an accidental member of the family. Twelve to fifteen years ago – long enough that the exact date is hazy in my mind – she came to us.…
The Red Book That Is So Wonderful
There’s a red book that’s been sitting on my desk for months. It’s one of many that have been sent to me for book reviews. That pile got smaller recently…
The Risks of For-Profit Community Care
With the sale of the Shouldice Clinic to a health care conglomerate it is useful to review some of the literature comparing for-profit hospitals to non-profit hospitals. The results show…
How we die in Canada
Statistics Canada maintains a snapshot of how Canadians die. The chart not only gives an indication of how nearly a quarter million of us cast off this mortal coil each…
Humor: an evolutionary explanation
Humans have evolved to have a sense of humor — sorry, most humans have evolved to have a sense of humor because it helps us deal with: the vast indifference…