I just turned 66. I never had a “mid-life crisis” in my forties. But in 2019, when I was in a fabulous space as a Fulbright Specialist working in New Zealand, I experienced an enormous fear of death. No reason. Nothing happened there that would have brought this on. …

If you love jazz but haven’t heard of Samara Joy, you will. This sensational 24-year old Grammy winner has a remarkable range and a beautifully humble and authentic personality. — Early November: A post popped up on one of my WhatsApp groups. “I can’t use my tickets to see the jazz singer Samara Joy in Paris. Whoever would like them, contact me.” I have become a jazz aficionado in Paris, attending lots of the clubs here that once hosted Josephine…

Changes in my students from the 1980s-90s to today make me wonder what is happening to beat these young people down, and what we can do to help them In recent years, but especially since the Covid pandemic, some of the emails I have received from my university students cause me to break into tears: I’m from Morocco and lost six relatives to the earthquake. A seventh, one of my cousins, committed suicide because he could not cope. I…

“I don’t like the term ‘pop singer.’ It sounds to me like something dispensable. I’m not dispensable.” When I told my dance teacher in Paris that I was going to see Madonna at the Accor Arena on November 19, he smirked and said, “What? She’s still around?” He’s usually nice…

Childhood autumns in the Northeastern United States were a joyful mix of colors, scents, and activities. Florida, not so much. Paris, delightful! — My childhood, and my children’s childhoods, were spent in rural areas of western New York, Connecticut, Maine and New Hampshire. Fall was my favorite time of year. For one, I was a weird kid who loved school, and fall signaled its return. But my other joy was the beauty of…

Travel and life abroad have been the joy of my life. But they have also made it so hard to return to what I once called “home.” — I’m a traveler. I must have gotten the “bug” as a child, as my dad moved up the ladder from job to job — Niagara Falls; someplace in New Jersey; Jamestown, then Lakewood, New York; Ellington, Connecticut. When I was a senior in high school, Dad’s company sent him to…

Today’s New York Times had an article entitled “Hungry (but not for Human Contact): Americans Head for the Drive-Through.” This article details the fact that US citizens are now preferring to buy their meals using drive-in restaurants that deliver to them in their cars. Reasons given for the preference include…

How ballroom dance has enhanced my senior years — I guess I’ve always been creative. When I was a little girl, my paternal grandmother taught me how to oil paint. In junior high, I got into gymnastics, which is a highly creative sport. As a young adult, I learned to play the guitar, and I have always loved to…

Being unwelcome, uncared for, and vilified in a world of violence — Gray is rarely anyone’s favorite color. If we wear it, we tend to complement it with a brilliant shade of green, blue, or red. It feels like the color of a cemetery, of death. Gray is often ugly. The color of a dreary day, a rain-filled day, a muddy puddle…