Our eight-year-old son got his own library card yesterday and we celebrated it like a holiday. As he filled out the form, full of pride, he asked me what to do on the signature line. I explained it is a place to write your name in a fancy way. The bubble letters that ensued were puffy with enthusiasm. As my friend later told me- “regular letters could not contain him.” We meandered around the library;
Keep readingThis past Saturday, while on call in my office, I saw three newborns. Each one was a few days old, newly discharged from the hospital. Each one was warm and tiny and made me long for those first few delirious days when my sons were new: milky, mewing, and soft. Looking ahead on my schedule, there are another three newborns tomorrow. Two on Tuesday. Nursery rounds are full. I am not suggesting that perhaps people
Keep readingI fall hard for stories about scrappy siblings. Maybe it’s because I grew up in a house with such fantastic brothers. Maybe siblings just make for good stories. All I know is, from The Saturdays to The Five Children and It, to The Boxcar Children to All-of-a-Kind Family, I have always loved books where houses are overstuffed, a jumble of kids are tumbling along the walls, and siblings in a jam help each other out/save
Keep readingA real-life one act play from this past weekend:[Late at night. I am in bed, reading with a tiny book light so as not to disturb my husband, who is wisely sleeping. He rolls over]Husband: The book is that good?Me: Hmmmm? (distracted “I’m reading mumble”- he is well acquainted)Husband: The book. It’s really good?Me: So good! If I had this book when I was 10 or 11, I would have been up past midnight reading
Keep readingOn March 16, my county went into a forced hibernation. School buildings closed, indoor dining (the only winter dining we have in Syracuse) closed. Groceries stores went into overdrive. The libraries closed. Shelves were bare. We were bartering toilet paper for flour and yeast. I could go on, but why? I think you were doing your own bartering as well. The point is, the libraries closed. This was a very big deal, and would have
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