“The question, ‘Why?’ forms at the moment you see your first death. It never goes away. It’s never answered.”—Helen Noakes Waking Point By Helen Noakes “Monsters exist, but they are too few in…

“Yes, we are definitely afraid of being attacked, particularly when we are new to the training, but there is so much more: fear of someone’s strength, fear of someone’s anger, fear of looking…

“Fear of the latest technology is often assumed without proof of harm. While it’s true that industrial robots have killed several people working around them, the fault in most cases was the human’s.…

“You’re mine by virtue of love and perseverance, by the force of sheer determination. For your grandmother and I held onto our friendship through political upheavals which hurled our families to opposite ends…

“My ‘advice,’ the crone-wisdom of 2016, differs dramatically from what I had to impart, to say, as a young adult mother in 1987. For our world—that of my granddaughters and me—has morphed quickly…

“For me, and the over 400 other lovely maniacs from all over the globe who are my training partners, the camp represents an uber-immersion in our beloved martial art. We are all here…

“Petros Ladas is my son. I’ve asked him to guest-write this ‘letter to the future’ since he’s been telling me about all the positive possibilities of our planet’s evolution. It does not have…

“The street prophet with the fateful warning is undeniably right: the end is near. I will die. Meanwhile, there is work to do, there are people who need help, tastes to savor. I…

“The relatively recent appearance (c. 1920) of what I call the ‘third generation’ has led to the poverty of idioms and proverbs alluding to grandparents. ‘Grandfather clock’ is solidly ensconced even as the…

“Sitting across from each other, we are trying so very hard to communicate. I apologize to her repeatedly for misconstruing what she attempts to tell me. She searches futilely for the word I…