Until I took this trip with NextTribe, my favorite all-women travel group, I always associated Vietnam with the ugly war of the 1960s and 70s. It hit my generation hard, affecting all those around me. You couldn’t avoid it; the nightly news always included horror stories, body counts, protests and counter-protests. It tore our country apart. I grieved over the loss of friends, wrote admission letters to get my brother into college, and helped others leave for Canada to avoid the draft. March 2023 commemorated 50 years since the war ended and this trip seemed like a good opportunity to reconcile my old, negative association with the modern reality.
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Gardeners Anonymous, Where Are You?
Hang out with me for any length of time and you will hear me repeat my many mantras. A frequent one is: I have too many gardens for a single woman with a social life. It’s become a problem. While I do love gardening—I truly enjoy both the process and the result—it seems to have taken over my life and my yard. Ornamental trees, shrubs, flowers, ground cover, herbs, vegetables, a water garden, grass, and weeds; they are all there. And, as I (gracefully) age, I find gardening requires more Advil and leaves me with less energy for other pursuits. I truly regret it when I am too tired for dancing…but is having a meaningful conversation after dinner considered a pursuit? How about staying awake past 8 PM?
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The Aging Brain: I’ll Never Forget What’s-His-Name
The article At Capacity by Melissa Kirsch (copied here) appeared today in my morning New York Times newsletter and it really resonated with me. Her struggles are painfully familiar. I am also an avid reader who has trouble remembering what I’ve read, especially if I read it on my Kindle, where everything seems transient and ephemeral. It’s different with hardcopy books; every time I pick them up, I see the title and the cover and those visuals seem to help…somewhat. Sadly, books aren’t the only things I wrestle with. Continue reading
accidental goddess 