Author: Iris Ruth Pastor

The bridge to happiness is peppered with spontaneity. I’m 74 years old – if not now, when? So one lazy Saturday afternoon my good buddy, Francine, calls me to tell me she found some old National Geographic Magazines for 25 cents apiece. I had just texted her that morning that I was looking for just that for Continue reading

Below is an email sent out to the congregation  my son and daughter-in-law belong to in New Jersey. I thank my DIL Julie for forwarding it to me. In the wake of the horrors, this message penned by Rabbi Matthew Gerwitz speaks to our souls.  Copyright © 2022 Iris Ruth Pastor, Writer and Speaker, All Continue reading

At age 55, here’s a few things I’ve learned about MYSELF:     There is wisdom in being brief     Being moody cancels out being charismatic     Being explosively unkind cancels out being one of those people who prides themselves on making things better     I’m a better healer of problems of which I am not Continue reading

It’s a funny thing about first cousins in later life… Since I had two siblings, lots of friends and an intact family, my first cousins always seemed to play a minor role in my life.  When visiting my Michigan cousins growing up, I noticed that artifacts of our family’s history adorned their walls and table tops – Continue reading

Sunday is Mother’s Day. What I have found is that monthly (weekly? daily? hour by hour? minute by minute?) I tend to need a little encouragement in the arena of parenting my adult sons.   So here are some musings on motherhood to give solace, provoke your funny bone and remind you, once again, that whatever you are Continue reading

It dawned on me the other day that I have been writing my weekly column for over half my life. That’s a long time. I’ve shared many experiences with you:       Empty nest      Increasingly jiggly body parts      Bulimia      Relevancy in adult kids’ lives      Books I’ve hated and ones Continue reading

My first introduction to a pin was probably the ubiquitous  diaper pin, a necessity in the 1940’s for securing a cloth diaper in place on infants and roaming toddlers. I don’t remember mine, but my little brother’s diaper pins had powder blue plastic tops. Actually, the diaper pin was accidentally invented in 1849 by Walter Hunt. Apparently owing an Continue reading

We all look at the world differently – through our own little silo– impacted by past events and our present circumstances. This idea bopped me on the head as I listened to my Calm App one morning as Tamara Levitt related this tale:  Three blind men come across an elephant. Curious to learn just what an elephant Continue reading

The war in the Ukraine rages on. The photojournalist Heidi Levine is witness to the horrors in Bucha – a town of around 36,000 people, roughly 16 miles from Kyiv. Her photos report:     Bodies torn from bikes and then shot      Others, with arms tied behind their backs, mercilessly gunned down.      Civilians, living under bombardment Continue reading

The headlines scream:     Putin Exploits America’s Fear of Nuclear War     Russia’s Bombardment Grinds On     U.S. Sends Soviet Air Defenses to Ukraine      United States Will Welcome up to 100,000 Ukrainian Refugees     Putin is Targeting Civilians and It’s a War Crime My routine, however, continues uninterrupted:     8:40 AM:  I wake up. Roll Continue reading