Saving my life: deep summer edition.

It’s suddenly August (how??) and between work, a couple of weekend getaways and serious summer heat, here’s what’s saving my life right now: Poetry Unbound. I had missed the most recent season, but am catching up, and it’s a joy to hear Padraig’s lilting Irish voice and discover new-to-me poets. Daylilies, echinacea and sunflowers – […]

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saving my life: suddenly June edition.

Hello, friends. It is June, somehow, and the world is purple and green: tall ruffled iris, big puffball alliums, flowering catmint, leggy delphiniums. And the pink is splashing out, too: rhododendrons, fluffy peonies, bright sweet beach roses overflowing with bees. The weather is up and down, as it often is; the headlines are heartbreaking, as […]

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saving my life: midwinter ’22 edition.

Well. We are digging out from a serious snowstorm, and it’s also (according to the calendar) the halfway point of winter. I’m linking up with Anne Bogel and others to share a list of what’s saving my life these days – because any and all lifesavers are worth celebrating. Here’s mine: My final paperwhite bulb […]

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saving my life: frigid January edition.

Hello, friends. It is so cold – the high yesterday here in Boston was 14 (!) degrees. It feels much warmer today (we’re above freezing!), but between the cold and the endless pandemic anxiety, I’ve been struggling with the blues. At least the sun is (mostly) shining; we had a solid week of rain and […]

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saving my life: midwinter 2021 edition.

Hello, friends. It’s February, which is always a long month, even though it’s a short one. (See also: endless pandemic fatigue, etc.) We’ve had some snow and will have more, and I keep thinking of E.B. White’s words about cold weather: “firm, business-like cold that stalked in and took charge […] as a brisk housewife […]

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saving my life: a little retail therapy.

I’m not much of a shopper normally, though I can rarely (if ever) resist a bookstore. But I love getting mail and supporting small businesses, and in these still-strange days, I’ll take my joys where I can find them. So lately, I’ve been indulging in a little retail therapy: mostly online, but a little bit […]

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saving my life: coronavirus edition.

Hello, friends. Here we are, staring down week 5 (say it ain’t so) of what my former colleague Juliette Kayyem calls “the now normal.” It is also Easter Sunday, and the middle of Passover – and if you are celebrating, I hope you’re finding ways to do that. These days are edged with worry and […]

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Saving my life: winter 2020 edition.

It’s become a midwinter tradition: every February, dozens of us link up with Anne Bogel to answer a brilliant question (from Barbara Brown Taylor): “What is saving your life now?” I make these lists periodically throughout the year (the act of making them can itself be lifesaving), but I always need the reminder in midwinter. […]

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Saving my life: air travel edition.

  Every December, I pack a big suitcase and travel down to Texas to spend the holidays with my family. (I make this journey two or three times a year, but Christmas is the big one.) It’s always something of an odyssey, and it’s never without a headache or two. But there are a few […]

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saving my life: mid-November edition.

We’ve had nearly a week of grey skies and misty rain – yesterday was the first sunny day since last Saturday. I finally felt I could breathe again. In between meetings, construction noise at work and cooking dinner, here’s what is saving my life now: Fresh pomegranates – seeding them is somehow satisfying, and the […]

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