Christmas

On Christmas Eve Day, I felt a little blue. Maybe it was the rain and fog. Maybe I longed for Christmases past with my children, now adults with lives of their own. Maybe I was just feeling sorry for myself. Betsy Lerner’s snarky humor spoke to me. “The holidays...

Approval

Our dogs look to Keith and me for approval. “Good girl, Freya,” we say, “good boy, Heathcliff,” when they’ve obeyed a command. We often stroke them, too, even when they haven’t done anything, just because we love them. Heathcliff likes approval but loves routine....