Opinion

Generations: The Optimism of a Quiet Spring Morning

April 23, 2026

Here is a usual kind of spring: in my yard, where all the good soil has disappeared, where nothing grows out of what’s left, where hoping that October bulbs will rise in May is just looking for heartache, here in this yard,…

Opinion

Generations: The Benefits of Keeping Empty Squares

April 22, 2026

I have a precarious relationship with my calendar. I keep a digital calendar, of course, but our family also has an old-school paper calendar hanging on the wall (this year it features photos from the Webb telescope). We all write our meetings,…

Opinion

Garden Gems: Mud Season is for Potting Up Houseplants

April 6, 2026

All Posts Spring is here and “the world,” to quote E.E. Cummings, “is mud-luscious.” As gardeners, we are aware! We long to get out in the garden and sink our hands in the earth but know we must wait for drier, warmer…

Opinion

Generations: Keeping Calm, Carrying On in Face of Lockdown

April 3, 2026

My parents went to school in the 1950s, when they had to participate in the (in)famous “duck and cover” drills. The idea: Hiding under your desk made you safe from a nuclear attack, important at the height of the Cold War. As…

Opinion

Generations: We Didn’t Panic. And That’s What Scares Me.

April 3, 2026

It happened again. I was sitting in my 11th grade English class last month when an announcement came over the intercom: “We are entering shelter-in-place,” a deep, urgent voice warned. I was immediately spooked. So was most of the class. My teacher…

Opinion

Ask Lisa: Should Teenagers Learn to Push Through?

March 26, 2026

When teens falter and opt out of an obligation, how do we best support them—by honoring their withdrawal, or by urging them to work past inner misgivings and fulfill their original goals? That’s the question behind a parent’s concern: My 14-year-old recently…

Opinion

Generations: If Not You, Then Who?

March 20, 2026

It’s late, and I’m lying down in bed with my phone inches away from my face, scrolling endlessly. Story after story pops up. A headline screams about violence and war. A mother cries on my screen, talking about how she cannot afford…

Opinion

Generations: Language Fluency Hones Mental Acuity

March 6, 2026

After the gold watch and the farewell luncheon, some of us turn to the next worry: cognitive loss. Experts (and plenty of non-experts) have laundry lists of preventive strategies. They pop up in newspaper columns, podcasts, the psychology section of the bookstore,…

Opinion

Garden Gems: Regional Group Spreads Native Plant Seeds to Support Pollinators

March 5, 2026

Back in COVID times, many of us discovered new activities in quarantine. Some of us learned a new craft or tended sourdough cultures, while others turned to outdoor pursuits. I was decidedly in the second camp; I remember posting a photo of…

Opinion

Generations: Are Urgent Cares Really Urgent?

March 2, 2026

Back in September, I learned more about the American health care system than I probably ever wanted to, all because of a sprained ankle. And it made me realize the stark differences in how health care works in South Korea, where there…

Opinion

Ask Lisa: Reconnecting With Your Teenager

February 21, 2026

Is it possible for parents to engage their teen children in real conversations? One parent wrote me: We have two teens, ages 14 and 16. They are good kids (so far!), but I am sad that they have no interest in hearing…

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