Until recently, scientists thought humans were the only species with the specialty brain neurons responsible for higher cognitive functions like self-awareness, a sense of compassion, and language. They were wrong. Fifteen million years before humans, whales began evolving these special glial cells, and now a strange phenomenon is occurring off the Baja coast of Mexico. Humans […]
One of my cherished and vivid memories is a sweltering summer night in my hometown of Montgomery, Alabama. Although I was too young for a driver’s license, my father—never one to let little rules stop him—was teaching me to drive. Out of the darkness ahead, a bright headlight beamed directly into my eyes, blinding me. […]
There’s a lot to worry about. The world is on fire. Literally and figuratively. It’s not the first time, of course, even though it feels like a unique crossroads of time. I grew up under the threat of nuclear winter and the extinction of life on Earth. My family discussed what to do should the […]
When I was young, I had a deep need to understand the meaning of life. It consumed me. A knot inside that HAD to be untangled. Why was I alive? Why was I me? I believed if I thought about it hard enough, I would figure it out. (Hubris, that!) I knew the answer was […]
What makes a hero? I just read about a marine who disobeyed orders and moved into the line of fire to rescue his fellows. He saved several lives and received a Medal of Honor. That’s a hero, for sure. Just the fact that he endangered himself for others is heroic. But strangely, the “disobeyed orders” […]
A mouse propelled me into crime. I was twelve years old, and I didn’t like what I was seeing . . . or smelling. Most sixth grade science classes use frogs to dissect, but for whatever reasons, our teacher decided on mice, little white mice to be exact, with pink noses, tiny paws, and bright […]
It felt like a blow—what the woman beside me was saying. Questions flicked through my mind: Was this what happened? How could I not remember that? Why did I not remember what had triggered the entire thing? Circa 1980: My partner and I went into a well-known restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama to eat dinner. We […]
Three is a magic number. Can you hear your mother counting down the time left until unnamed but dreadful forces will compel you to do what you haven’t done yet? Your personality might have made you immediately hop to at “1.” Or (like me) you might have waited until the last possible moment before her […]
One day, I looked at an area along the brick walkway in the front of my house and realized I needed to do something extreme. Despite having spread grass seeds more than one season, only weeds grew in the shadow of a magnificent weeping yaupon that arcs over the sidewalk and shaded a crescent-shaped area. […]
Yes, I am Jewish and don’t “officially” celebrate Christmas, but well, I’ll let my husband tell it [except for my added comments, of course.]: “She had me at Dickens. You need a bit of backstory to understand that. During some of my wife’s travels earlier this year, she discovered a Dickens festival in some far […]