Author Archives: Risa Denenberg

>She was admitted to the hospital just before Christmas after swallowing a lethal dose of Tylenol, but she survived with medical intervention. Her reason? She was tired of being chronically sick, worried about her impaired mobility, afraid that she would … Continue reading →

>The house was dark and cluttered, close to what I would have to call dirty, smelled of cigarettes and fried fish. Her partner told me she hadn’t really woken up all day, but I was welcome to try to waken … Continue reading →

> We talked about her pain. An old pain from a ulnar fracture when she was ten. The new pain in her belly from pancreatic cancer. Pains in-between. Small heaps of pain, if she separated them into categories: physical, emotional, … Continue reading →

> He was a drifter sort of guy. He mentions fishing boats and lumber yards, an estranged wife and grandchildren that he adores, but never gets to see. He is thought to be a problem because he comes to emergency … Continue reading →

> I find it upsetting that geese are being labeled combatants in the plane crash in NYC yesterday. Even NPR was calling it a “double bird strike”. Did the birds attack the plane? I hardly think so. Did they even … Continue reading →

> If we could explain life, we could explain death. Mostly we take life for granted and deny death. But in rare exquisite moments when we see life for the miracle it truly is, it becomes possible to imagine death. … Continue reading →

>This week I met with the family of a man in his late sixties who had had undergone emergency surgery for a bowel obstruction and then had a cardiac arrest after surgery and now was in a vent-weaning facility. Second … Continue reading →

> I came out to Seattle last June to interview for my present job. Planning to come for the interview was enormous—even more enormous than the burdensome task of selling my home and moving cross-country. As much as I wish … Continue reading →

> Another year. One year ago, when I began blogging here, I wrote: Though not inherently an optimist, I’m prone to think a new year may bring positive change. How do arbitrary thresholds hold such hope? Perhaps it doesn’t matter, … Continue reading →

> Last day. Of what? NowI see how time runs its race.Sixty years. Nothing. Restaurant chatterI, without company, eyeeggs, draft these haiku Foam-topped latte warmsLips, tongue, palate, throat, bosom.Finding its own path. I recommend theVeggie-Potato-SouffléAt Sunflour Café Eating alone takesno … Continue reading →