Public Ponder

14 Venezuelan Women Walk El Camino de Santiago in the Rain

I traveled with thirteen women from my high school class to Punta Cana, in the Dominican Republic, the year we all turned 50. I had been close with several of my fellow travelers while in high school,...Read More →

Why I Can Never Get Divorced

“Did you hear the news about Ben Affleck?” Diego, my 30-year-old autistic son, asked me this past summer. “No, Diego. What happened?” I replied, wondering if Affleck had died or something. “He split...Read More →

The Stranger Who Boosted My Trust in Humankind

One Tuesday morning this past summer, as I was about to leave for work, I realized my pocketbook wasn’t in my bag. It wasn’t hiding in my gym bag or the space between the car seat and door either. After...Read More →

The Bittersweet Gift of Family Reunions When Your Child Is Autistic

“What’s the funniest thing that has happened to you lately?” my sister Gabi asked a group of family members one evening this past June. We had gathered at the big old porch of the Lillagaard, a bed and...Read More →

When My Father Became a Revered Elder

My father reminds me of the ogre Shrek: grumpy, odd, impatient, looking to be left alone, but at the same time inordinately sweet, interesting, and self-assured. These discordant qualities have become...Read More →

First Times

While running with my son Diego recently, I saw an owl in the wild for the first time, a big old brown owl sitting on a branch near the side of the road. Sure, I’d seen many owls in captivity before and...Read More →

What Going Gray Has Taught Me about My Sense of Self-regard

One year ago, I decided to stop coloring my hair. The tyranny of needing to get it done every three weeks was driving me mad. Going gray was a stupidly difficult decision, “stupidly” because it’s entirely...Read More →

Autistic and Social: My Son Is the Most Social Person I Know

One thing I hate about my son Diego’s autism label is that it suggests he’s not social. The implication is to be expected, of course, seeing as the diagnosis requires “Persistent deficits in social...Read More →

Why Aging Doesn’t Scare Me

Since turning 50 four years ago, I’ve become obsessed with the topic of aging. By aging, I mean everything about the five-plus possible decades of life that remain for me, and what life will ideally ...Read More →