Author: Iris Ruth Pastor

My weekly newsletter comes out every Friday at 3 pm. I started writing it when my youngest son Louie was about three years old and he is now pushing thirty-nine. So I guess I’ve written a couple of thousand. My columns used to run about 900 words, but over the decades – along with our Continue reading

Have you ever gone to a craft’s fair and watched the crowds huddle at one booth but barely enter another? I always feel sorry for the craftsperson/artist who sits there – solitary – trying not to appear desperate for customers – perched on a stool staring mindlessly at her cell phone. I’m afraid that in Continue reading

Have you ever gone to a craft’s fair and watched the crowds huddle at one booth but barely enter another? I always feel sorry for the craftsperson/artist who sits there – solitary – trying not to appear desperate for customers – perched on a stool staring mindlessly at her cell phone. I’m afraid that in Continue reading

Five years ago today, my sister and brother and I lost our mom to a very short battle with pancreatic cancer. She wanted to die on her birthday and she did.She wanted to be surrounded by family as she drew her last breath. And she was.She wanted to die in peace, without physical pain, and Continue reading

One morning, I am jolted by an e mail that pops up in my inbox. It is from him – my first love. “Iris, I have something I think you would like which I would like to send you. I need your address so I can have UPS ship it down. If you doubt the validity Continue reading

Let me be clear: my husband is my soul mate. We have been married almost 47 years. However – and this is a BIG however – he was NOT my FIRST LOVE. My boyfriend and I started going steady in 9th grade – although we were already throwing sneaky sidelong glances at each other during Continue reading

It is 3 p.m.He is the last speaker in a long line of speakers, which had begun at 8 a.m. I am attending a holistic health summit. Some of the speakers are riveting and some are technical and above my pay grade. On the verge of a major headache from information overload, I am tempted to skip-out on Continue reading

You certainly know a lot about ME. I would like to know more about YOU. Please feel free to answer some or all of the questions below and send back to me.    What is your biggest challenge? Best book you read in 2022? What is your favorite way to relax? Name a healthy habit you currently have or would like to adopt?  What is Continue reading

I’m sorry. I just can’t resist.It’s a compulsion that just can’t be corralled in.(I think I’ve been bingeing on too many Yellowstone episodes – I’m starting to think like a cowboy.) It’s a New Year and a New Year calls for a whole new array of quotes to inspire and entertain. And a very thoughtful friend gave me a Continue reading

The beginning of this new year for me is not just about making resolutions, but is centered on trying to gain clarity over what my core values really are – not just muddling through with no clear vision – which, by the way, is what I normally do. I have one advantage though: living in a Continue reading