Compassion*
Sean MurphyLicense registration, no I ain’t got none, But I got a clear conscience ‘bout the things that I done… When you find yourself singing Bruce Springsteen lyrics in New Jersey…
Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before*
Let me tell you a story. It involves a white male born in a steadily prospering town to a slowly prospering family. His father, the first in his Irish family…
Deconstructing the Theory Generation
I spent some time this morning reading (well, skimming) a mostly fascinating piece from n + 1 magazine. The author is Nicholas Dames and the essay is entitled "The Theory…
About Miracles*
(2002) i. Believing in miracles requires faith. Faith in miracles, faith in faith. The bible, taken on faith, is God’s word and the document of His work. Miracles are, for…
Q & A*
Question: What would you do differently? Answer: Nothing. True answer: Everything. Truest answer: I don’t know. *** If the death of a loved one provides the ultimate answer it also…
Ars Moriendi, Part Three: Ordinary Angels*
Parts One and Two considered the "before" and "during" of end-of-life care (and once again, Bill Keller's piece is recommended reading: check it here), and the final sections of my memoir deal with…
Ars Moriendi, Part Two: Hippocrates and Hypocrites*
Part One considered the "before" of end-of-life care (and once again, Bill Keller's piece is recommended reading: check it here), and this excerpt (from Keller, then me) deals with the…
Ars Moriendi, Part One: The Conversation*
Writing in the New York Times on October 7, Bill Keller's touching essay "How To Die" confirms a regrettably consistent reality regarding end-of-life care (the before, during and after of…
Adaptation*
Remembering. Everything changes after a baby is born. This is what everyone told her. Her mother had told her everything, but—she would come to understand—there is nothing that can be…
Encomium
August 30, 2002 I said: Everything that is good about me is because of my mother. I was in a church for the first time in forever. The church where…