Writing out of my mind

by Joan Silberlicht Epstein

I have been a keen observer of people and my surroundings for as long as I can remember. I sat and I watched and I wondered. While I never took to hiding in dumbwaiters (does anyone actually have one of these?) Harriet the Spy fascinated me.

I have not always spoken up about my observations, but I have always had plenty to say. This blog is a compilation of those things. Welcome to the inside of my head!

1/1/13 1/1/13

If I Am Blessed with a Daughter

I never met my father’s mother. Couldn’t remember her name until I learned my older sister is her namesake.
I found her picture once wedged between the Jewish World Atlas and a biography of Moshe Dayan.

12/25/12 12/25/12

Remembering Mom

Today is my mother’s 82nd birthday, or would have been had she not died in her early forties. Now, at the age of 46, I have already lived three years longer than she did. I think of her every day even though more than seventy five percent of my life has been without her.

12/14/12 12/14/12

Outside the Comfort Zone – Part 2

There are many moments in life when I find that I am at a loss for words but none of them are quite as hard as when I am trying to respond to someone else’s misfortune. Whether I am hearing of a death, divorce or medical condition, words of comfort, while heartfelt, are hard to find. Nothing seems adequate.