(Editor’s Note: This story was previously published by PBS NewsHour.) Twyla Tharp is the greatest choreographer of our era. Her groundbreaking career in dance blended classical ballet with contemporary culture. Now, at age 78, Tharp is sharing her inno… Continue reading
Part of the VITALITY ARTS SPECIAL REPORT Poet and teacher Zoë Bird began the weekly class at Cerenity Senior Care in St. Paul, Minn. with a simple greeting: “Good morning, poets.” She walked around the circle, greeting each of the eight participants by… Continue reading
In David Kessler’s latest book, Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief (Simon and Schuster), he writes: We want to find meaning. Loss can wound and paralyze. It can hang over us for years. But finding meaning in loss empowers us to find a path forw… Continue reading
Part of the Vitality Arts Special Report When you think of the milestones in life deserving of a celebration, do you think of retirement? As this rousing and congratulatory speech given by Twin Cities poet, teacher and dancer Mary Moore Easter reveals,… Continue reading
When someone dies, courtesy dictates that we write our condolences. These letters can be some of the hardest thoughts we will put to paper, even for those of us who usually have a great facility for words. And sometimes, difficult circumstances surroun… Continue reading
Not long ago, I was a panelist at a conference for women. After my session, a number of us were seated together at a large, round lunch table — the kind that, in theory, makes it easier to talk to one another. Within minute,s I began to wonder if I wer… Continue reading
Do you spend too much time wondering what could have been, if only you’d made other choices or taken another path earlier in life? Many of us have lingering regrets about ways that we could have lived our lives differently. Research shows that as we ge… Continue reading
I’m indebted to the team of psychologists at UC Berkeley who just released a study that poor sleep in middle age raises your risk of developing dementia. I was running out of things to be alarmed about when I’m still wide awake at 2:47 a.m. Which is pr… Continue reading
My weekly lunch date gently slides into the passenger seat of my sedan. His thin gray hair is carefully combed, his square jaw and cleft chin are freshly shaven. Before I pull away from the two-story house, my childhood home, I lean over to give my 93-… Continue reading
As pastoral counselor Jane Myers’ husband, Steve, lay dying in a Louisville hospital in late 2016, his boss at the University of Louisville pulled her aside. ‘I’m so sorry to have to ask you this, but it’s exam time and we don’t know where the exams ar… Continue reading