Friendships

My friends are getting sick at an alarming rate. No doubt it goes with the aging process. We all get our share of aches and pains but some illnesses are a matter of life and death. When your friend is diagnosed with a serious illness, what’s the best way to respond?

My very friendly next-door neighbours moved back to the US. In many ways, it was not a surprise, as they were always going to be visitors in London – here because of the husband’s job. Yet it came as both a shock and a loss…

Some years ago, when my mother flew alone across Canada to visit with me, I was desperate to find a way to rekindle our former deep emotional connection. Since she had remarried several years earlier, I felt that I had lost some of our precious bond…

I ask myself this question often: how did I remain good friends with not one, but two ex-husbands? First, let me say that I am eternally grateful for that. There is no magic answer, but rather an ironic one; I chose two good men. If tomorrow…

Social isolation is defined as the lack of relationships with others and little to no social support or contact. Loneliness, on the other hand, shows itself as feeling alone or disconnected from others even if you aren’t alone. It can feel like you lack deep…

If the infamous ‘man from Mars’ were to suddenly arrive on this earth, what would he think that people were all about? From scanning traditional media, not to mention social media, I would surmise that he would see a search for wealth…

“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…

Loneliness is associated with early mortality. Loneliness is not about feeling isolated socially; it is a deep feeling of being alone in the world. Some have described our modern-day situation as an “epidemic of loneliness…

I work a few days a week as a professional chef and, at 66, I am the same age as many of my young co-workers’ grandmothers. It’s challenging sometimes, but mostly it’s fun, invigorating and keeps me feeling and acting younger…

A few years ago I had a long term friendship come to an end. Four decades of love, laughter and jokes, gone. I felt as though someone had removed a part of my heart. However, that experience both taught me important life lessons…