Prayer not pity Our earnest plea Comfort not sadness Our fondest hope Friendship not neglect Our greatest wish God’s good grace Our cherished treasure — © Ron Cooper From “Fran’s Song,” the Alzheimer’s journey of Ron’s mother Continue reading
Latest Entries
Cancer survivors: Lend a hand
By Ron Cooper Cancer remission brings newfound freedom to explore, discover, express. But it also entails responsibility to help others who are in active treatment or are struggling to cope with the remission/recurrence cycle. Five years after my diagnosis, I am still on guard that cancer will return. It has once and aggressive treatment fended … Continue reading
Easter egg baskets: It’s never too late!
By Ron Cooper Easter Day. A middle-aged man carries an armful of wrapped sweets to the checkout counter at a drugstore. Two of them slip from his grasp and tumble to the floor. I stop to retrieve them and casually remark: “Wow, I guess your kids are going to be happy receiving these today!” … Continue reading
Nostalgia: I miss eye contact
By Ron Cooper Call me a dinosaur, but I miss a simpler time without pinging notifications, YouTube commercials and trending Twitter topics. I miss eye contact. I was taught that steady eye contact and a firm handshake came from promise-keepers, truth-tellers and people of admirable character. Eye contact served me well as a cub reporter … Continue reading
Mail drop
By Ron Cooper That’s odd, I thought, as I watched a man trying to retrieve his mail. He stood there motionless for 30 seconds, staring at the mailbox, his right hand shaking. Then, one by one, the trembling hand dropped the letters onto the ground. At the end, he held only one. Amazingly, he didn’t … Continue reading
Cancer survivors: Be discreet!
by Ron Cooper With cancer, survivor anniversaries are important milestones. At times, you want to shout it from the rooftops, go on 60 Minutes or address the United Nations. Other times, it’s best to shut up. Once I was at a family gathering, and boasted proudly that I had reached my five-year mark as a … Continue reading
Welcome to America: Signs say it all
by Ron Cooper Refugees and immigrants moving to our communities may often feel like a duck out of water. They may be greeted, not with warm embraces and welcome, but instead with glares and ill-chosen words of intolerance and bigotry. Compassion demands that we respond to these newcomers with open arms. A simple way to … Continue reading
Your lucky number 1
1 who adores you, though you are far from perfect 1 who trusts you, though your judgment may be flawed 1 who knows the real you, and treats you genuinely 1 who never gives up on you, despite the obstacles 1 who feels your pain and shares your triumph 1 who sees your good and … Continue reading
