Tag: Guest Column

I just finished my annual reading of “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Wow. As long as I live, I will read this novel. And for...

RADIATE S.U.N.S. JOY to add more sunny happiness and warm contentment to your world and to others. American literary legend, Edith Wharton, glowed with...

“The JOYrontologist” is saluting joy-seeking explorers this Columbus Day holiday. As we raise flutes of Prosecco and chow down on veal pizza (recipe below),...

ODE TO AUTUMN Autumn days are here, blue sky clear and dear. Let’s harvest a bushel of joy and fall cheer. Our S.U.N.S. (Smile-Making, Uniting, Neighboring, Spellbinding)...

F-WORDS  ̶̶  there are so FLIPPIN’ many FANTASTICATIOUS ones! Here are a few more fun, FLAVORFUL faves after all of these from the former...

F-WORDS are not used frequently enough. At least that’s true for some F-WORDS. There are so many FABU F-WORDS, I’ve FINAGLED them into two...

ODE TO THE “E WORD” Isn’t it a sweet surprise That play is a workout in disguise. Chic gym clothes can never glamorize The boring drudge of exercise. S.U.N.S....

ODE TO SOLITUDE Solitude and loneliness Are far from the same. Solitude is exquisite pleasure; Loneliness, excruciating pain. My name is Ben and…I am a GREGARIOUS HERMIT. There, I’ve...

“If you have no charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble.”—Bob Hope HILARITY FOR CHARITY is a perfect example of...

“If we all just lend a hand, we can lift some hearts.”—Melody Minagar  HEART IN HAND is a centuries-old symbol of compassion and a willingness...

Remember when America was all about freedom-loving fun and people fought for “The Right to Party?” Even in 1773 (evening of December 16), our...

                                                        ODE TO JOY-ZINES                                    A self-pub, a journal, a dream board, a zine;                                    All the positivity one might glean.                                    For you and by you,...

                                                                      ODE TO MY DAD                             Dad, I’m glad you were one of my favorite parents,                             Even though we disagreed about most sermons and nearly...

NEVER TRUST A GERONTOLOGIST UNDER 70! Please hear me saying that playfully. However, I’ve done my 70 years and spent much of it studying...

                                                                       ODE TO SUMMER                                                   My longtime favorite season is summer.                                                   Though fall, spring nor winter is a bummer.                                                   At 70, this thought’s not a...

                                                        AMERICAN HEROES by Cheryl Alexander (American poet, Cheryl Alexander, about her ode to heroes: “This poem is dedicated to all the heroes in our...

I LOVE LIBRARIES and I have a dream of a beautiful, FREE, public one with happy colors, patron-selected seating, art murals, craft/study/activity areas, cubbies,...

                                                             When I get the urge to purge,                                                              I first put on some music.                                                              A little more punk and a little less dirge,                                                              Then...

                                                                ODE TO ZZZ                                                      ZZZ are A-okay methinks,                                                      Each regarded with great esteem.                                                      A long sleep or just 40 winks,                                                      To doze, perchance to...

                                                                    ODE TO WANDERLUST                                                  I long to walk there, maybe there and then there.                                                  More joy-filled I’ll return, you may surely trust.                                                  In my...

                                                                ODE TO BLOOMING                                                 Stealthily, they commanded the hill,                                                 Though no cannons nor bombs were booming.                                                 No movement detected, all seemed deadly still.                                                 Then,...

                                                              ODE TO REINVENTING                                                   Any given day can be a time to start over,                                                   It just takes hard work, luck and good intention.                                                   So,...

                                                                ODE TO JOY BIRDS                                                   The singing kind are such joy birds,                                                   One rarely hears a whiner.                                                   Chirping, tweeting, hummingbirds                                                   Make a fine day...

                                                              ODE TO FOUR, JOYFUL SEASONS                                                          Spring is joyful, then there is also this,                                                          Summer is such sunny bliss.                                                          Autumn is a sweet molasses...

                                                       ODE TO A PLANTRY                                      Old Mother Gantry went to her pantry,                                      Looked angry, then trashed it all, blankly.                                      She restocked as a fun,...

                                                                      ODE TO A FUN, HEALTHY DIET                                                                           Try as I might,                                                                           A fun, healthy diet                                                                           Seems an oxymoron in daylight                                                                           And a darker mystery...

                                                          LAFF EVRY DAY!                                      Laff, laff for your brain and your heart.                                      Laffing makes you strong.                                      Laffing makes you smart.                                      Laffter is good for...

                                                        Too Young to Be Seventy—by Judith Viorst* Deep in my heart I believe I’m Too young to be seventy. There are times when I’m wearing my...

                                                               AN ODE TO GARDEN JOY                                      A book and a glass of wine in a garden is all I need;                                      A sip, the sunshine,...

                                        ODE TO BOOK JOY                             Books are magic transportable.                             Free libraries make them quite affordable.                             It is well-known but still reportable,                             Libraries need us...

ODE TO NEIGHBORING                                          Neighbors come in lots of flavors;                                          Lovers, haters, givers, takers.                                          Not to belabor, though no message greater,                                          Love all neighbors on...

                                                              ODE TO UNITING                                  (Dedicated to John Lennon and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.) I have a dream and I’m inviting All to end the fighting...

                                               ODE TO SMILE-MAKING When you’re smiling, the muscles it takes are 17. But, when you’re scowling, it takes 43 and looks so mean. When you’re smiling,...

“Starry Starry Night” by Vincent van Gogh, one of the most joy-giving paintings in the history of art, is a major crowd-pleaser at MOMA...

(Announcer): “From ‘Television City’ in beautiful Burbank, California—It’s ‘The Tonight Show Birthday Party’ with Johnny Carson and this week’s special, joy-giving guests: singer/songwriter Katy...

We are in Bedford, New York about an hour north of Manhattan for “The I Love Saturday Night Birthday Party.” Set amid 250 acres...

America has loved “Grandma” Moses and her art from the moment we saw one of her joy-giving paintings. For “The Crazy for Loving You...

September 11, 2001 – Sarasota, Florida: It was a beautiful day as I stepped out of a bungalow at a tennis resort where President...

I have been practicing medicine 28 years, and coronavirus is an altogether new experience for me. The biggest surprise for me is how rapidly...

The collection of ticks using sticky tape shows the abundance of ticks in certain areas in Alabama. (Emily Merritt) As a turkey hunter, I am...

Perhaps you’ve never heard of Ann Marie Reeves Jarvis, but because of her, we celebrate Mother’s Day. She was born in Culpepper, Virginia, on...