Giving Back and Volunteering

Before Great Gram got hitched at age 20, as they used to say, she was a teacher in a one-room rural Iowa schoolhouse. After marriage, she wasn’t allowed to teach. That was written in her contract. As a teacher, she called her readin’ and writin’…

Each July, we Americans dedicate time to celebrating our independence, and perhaps this year more so than others after we’ve endured various stages of isolation and lockdown amid the pandemic. The 4th is a time to revel in the notion…

“Social Connectivity” is science-language for a simple and obvious experience, that of connecting with others. We humans are, like it or not, fundamentally social creatures. Even introverts, such as myself, need to interact with others…

When I was growing up, we used to have a saying translated from Yiddish, “What am I, chopped liver?” We said it whenever any of us felt left out of the group in some way. In college, I studied social psychology and learned that humans crave a sense…

When you were younger but already adult, your parents most likely helped you in every way they could. Not everyone has such help, but a huge number of us do. And perhaps your grandparents did the same. Maybe it was financial help…

Eating is my passion and I take it seriously. I love cooking, but I’m passionate about being cooked for, so I’m supremely grateful my wife is an amazing home cook. Every time I devour one of her gastronomic gems, or even when we’re out restaurant…

My oldest grandchild just turned five, and since he was born, I have been blessed with four more grandchildren. Becoming a grandparent has been a magical experience for me. I never knew that it would elicit an entirely new set of thoughts and emotions…

Although sometimes being a climate activist can be overwhelming and depressing, I remind myself how lucky I am to be living at this important moment where we can step up to the biggest challenge in human history – to stop the destruction of our planet…

Future generations will depend on the choices we are making today. Every effort to reduce carbon emissions and protect natural habitats now will be much harder to take in future decades. Sara Jaquette Ray explains that the frontline for the climate crisis…

After a loved one dies and the funeral is over, you may think the worst is at an end. Then come the many practical matters: settling the estate, filing for life insurance benefits, transferring deeds and titles, and the often dreaded, and sometimes lengthy, task of…