Dear Reader, We don’t often talk about what grief actually does to us. We reach for tidy phrases like “processing loss” or “moving forward,” as if grief were a task to complete rather …
Dear Reader, John Keats wrote his sonnet “Four Seasons Fill the Measure of the Year” around 1818, and in fourteen lines he managed to do what the greatest writers always do — take …
To the Editor: I am a Vietnam era veteran. I proudly served my country for three years from May 3rd, 1966 to May 3rd, 1969. I served 19 months in Korea 45 miles from the DMZ 38th parallel on a MASH unit. I am in dire need of dialysis. I am presently in Wisconsin receiving dialysis. I cannot return to Crystal Falls, MI until I find 3 drivers who will drive me from Crystal Falls to Escanaba and back to Crystal Falls. I will pay for gas. Nobody left behind. Please call 906-875-3166 or 906-284-7221. -s- Robert Clement Minocqua, Wis.
Dear Reader, In a world overwhelmed by noise, wisdom is too often drowned out. Today, everything fights for our attention—headlines, outrage, sirens, engines—clamoring for dominance in an …
Dear Reader, There is a sound that has no business being casual, and yet somehow it has become exactly that. Splat. It is the sound of a body hitting the ground in a video game, the sound …
Dear Reader, The Founding Fathers granted the President the power to pardon as an act of mercy — a final check against injustice, a path toward rehabilitation, a recognition that even the best …
Dear Reader, There is a moment early in “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” when Nicolas Cage — playing a financially desperate version of himself — agrees to fly to a Spanish …
Dear Reader, Recently the word “nano” has been on my mind. Webster’s defines “nano” as “one-billionth of a unit.” In other words, a nano-inch is not one-half, one fourth, or …
Dear Reader, He met a woman the other day. Gray-haired, fourth quarter, still handsome in that particular way that time sometimes leaves behind — thick silver hair, lean frame, the kind of face …
Dear Reader, We are extraordinarily com-plicated creatures — God’s most intricate invention. And yet, for all that complexity, there is a deep and simple yearning in each of us: to relate to …
Dear Reader, When Elon Musk’s net worth jumps $30 billion in a single day—more than the entire GDP of Nepal—while teachers in Wisconsin communities hold fundraisers to buy classroom …
Dear Reader, Sometimes I wish I was an angel—able to do all good things, bring out the best in people, and lift their spirits. Imagine waking each day with a single purpose: to help, to …
Dear Reader, We are, quite honestly, out of our minds. Not clinically — just historically. No civilization before us has tried what we’re trying now: to copy and paste ourselves. Every …
Dear Reader, Throughout our lives, we share a universal desire: to be relevant. In our youth, we seek appreciation for our achievements in sports and academics, with popularity in school often …
Dear Reader, When I was young, gaming meant dropping a coin into a pinball machine or, later on, playing Pac-Man and Pong. These simple games were a far cry from today’s complex digital …
As we face another government shutdown crisis, I have two questions for you, our Congressional representatives in Washington. 1) On shutdowns: If federal employees lose their paychecks because …
Dear Reader, I’ve noticed something about our current moment: everyone is absolutely certain they’re right. Not just confident. Certain. The kind of certainty that doesn’t need to …
Dear Reader, You’ve been asking the wrong questions about love. Not “Do we share values?” or “Is there chemistry?” These matter, but they’re auditions for compatibility. Real …
Dear Reader, I watched a film recently that’s been lingering with me. Jay Kelly, a Netflix release, follows an actor at the twilight of his career, looking back on what …
Dear Reader, There’s a particular cruelty to senseless death—the kind that arrives through deliberate violence against someone who was, in that moment, trying to help. Alex Pretti was 37, an …