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Somewhere beneath the ribbons and bows and 50% sales and ritual commercialization of any holiday on our global calendar, there is the faint reminder that Christmas represents something hopeful. For me and millions of others, this hope is an enduring...

I was born in 1951. Nobody had much money - so rather than spending their savings going to restaurants, my mom and dad and their friends got together for pot-luck dinners which generally consisted of various types of casseroles, and...

One of the benefits of being an American is that we’re blessed to live in such a large, diverse, beautiful country. We’re got our interesting topography and a multicultural cross-section of people — we’d never need to leave our shores...

There’s nothing more apropos at Thanksgiving than being thankful. I am truly appreciative of the many blessings in my life — my family is, of course, at the top of that list. But since I have so many people and...

Motherhood represents a huge part of my overall personality, and sets the tone for the rhythm of my life. Though in addition to mothering four children, I’ve managed to continue to educate myself, write, publish books, engage in philanthropic endeavors...

I’m not a film critic, but I’ve recently viewed a film that touched me in so many ways, that I’m compelled to share my enthusiasm for it. Across the Universe took me back in time, but also seemed remarkably current....

Every once in a while you get an opportunity to walk in the presence of angels. I recently experienced one of those moments at a luncheon my husband and I hosted for Nobel Peace Laureate, Professor Muhammad Yunus - the...

How can we not insist that all of our children have healthcare?! It boggles the mind. We’re making a huge mistake if we don’t deal with our healthcare issues decisively, creatively and swiftly, and we need to get over the...

What is a woman’s worth? Is it synonymous with value? Who defines it? Is it a tangible thing? Are we born into it, marry into it, or do we earn it? I’m writing a book about women, and consequently this...

Most of us know someone in our own family — perhaps a relative, or a close friend who has been diagnosed with a mental illness, or has had to join a program for alcohol or substance abuse. Such events put...

Art and Culture can build bridges. Recently my husband and I were guests at a celebration given by a Christian-Arab family originally from Nazareth. An annual affair to honor the memory of the patriarch of the family, we were brought...

Living in a multigenerational family has its ups and downs. Ours has, thank God, mostly ups. We have teenagers, young adults, thirty-something couples, grandchildren, octogenarians, and even a 97-year-old in the family. But though we are on a chronic roller...

Beyond Cindy Sheehan’s decision to resume her private life, there are lessons to be learned about the nature of women in the public eye. Many women have challenged the system at great personal sacrifice. Just ponder these past couple of...

If your teenager is caught speeding - he or she may get their driver’s license suspended. If said teenager had any alcohol in his or her system, that license would probably be revoked entirely. These rules apply to all of...

Celebrating motherhood is big business. Not only is it the #1 day of the year for long distance phone calls, and the busiest day of the year for restaurant dining, greeting card companies say they’ll sell 144 million cards for...

I woke up to the knowledge that this is the day we celebrate Christ’s resurrection from the dead. I have songs of my childhood Sunday school in my mind…”Jesus Christ is risen today - Hallelujah.” I ponder that day -...

My sixteen-year-old daughter has had her license for all of two days. She called me distraught today to tell me that she just got a $40 parking ticket! She was furious, indignant, embarrassed, and, most of all, sure it wasn’t...

We woke up to a distressed call from my dad. It was about 1:00 am, and his voice was shaking and frail. “Sugar, I feel really bad.” My husband and I got up immediately, put on our robes and walked...

These days, with all our communication devices, BlackBerries, Bluetooth phones, and other gadgets, we get to hear what everybody else is doing, even if we don’t want to. Instant communication is ubiquitous in our society - it’s getting hard to...

For many of us, science is uncharted territory - stem cells, molecules, DNA, the genome, etc., are words and concepts about which the general public possesses a rudimentary knowledge, at best. But for research scientists - those high-functioning individuals engaged...