Posted 06/03/2010
Mom and Dad Left Us a Mess!
A common dilemma facing the “Sandwich Generation”
By Julie Hall
Question: My mother died a few months ago, leaving me completely overwhelmed with the accumulated mess she left behind. Though I tried to offer help on many occasions through the years, she would hear no part of clearing out her stuff. I spend most of my days in tears, resentful that she left me this mess, squeezed between her affairs and my family and job. Do you have any advice for me to handle this daunting task? Can you at least tell others not to do this to their children?
Read More >>Posted 12/10/2009
George Washington’s Health and Death
When consensus science is wrong
By James Hubbard, MD, MPH
George Washington was tough. Unbelievably tough. Everybody back then was, or they died. In his younger years, he had malaria, small pox, tuberculosis, and dysentery, to name a few. He lost all his teeth by middle age and wore various poor-fitting dentures made from ivory or different animals’ teeth, never wooden. Read More >>
Posted 11/19/2009
Death of a Child: Learning from the Travolta Family’s Tragedy
Acknowledge the feelings and experience the pain, but not by yourself
By James Hubbard, MD, MPH
No one should have to bury a child, a universal truth that will never be cliché. Nothing is worse than the death of your son or daughter. It haunts you forever. Read More >>
Posted 05/25/2009
The Good Death
At peace, no regrets, nothing unsaid
By Sara Myers
My friend Millie was given less than six months to live. Her cancer has metastasized. I’m not sure exactly how old Millie is, but I guess she is somewhere in her mid-80s. By her own measure, she has lived a good life and is ready to go. Millie is a wonderful woman, warm and generous. She raised two charming daughters who will carry on her legacy of living a meaningful life. Read More >>
Posted 05/05/2009
What Would You Do If You Knew . . .
A month to live
By Nancy Jelinek
In The End of the Alphabet, Ambrose is told he has only a month to live. He and his wife, Zipper, have no children or extended family, so his decision to travel as much as he can before dying affects only them. Read More >>
Posted 10/30/2008
Aunt Babe Died: What Do I Tell My Mother?
By Sara Myers
What do I tell my mother about her sister’s death? My natural tendency is to tell her the truth. Read More >>
