You couldn’t help envy everything she has. Beauty: She was a successful model and a former Miss Sweden; one of 5 finalists for Miss Universe. Brains: She’s a doctor, her impressive credentials include a medical degree from UCLA, Blessings: She has 3 children with her husband, a hugely successful businessman and philanthropist. Although one thing […]
Archives for July 2011
A Stage Mother—twice removed
The stage mother is a controversial and legendary figure—from Mama Rose to Dina Lohan. And looking backwards– from Lindsay Lohan to Judy Garland, the yellow brick road to success is littered with damaged child performers. Lots of the blame is pointed at their mothers, now known as momagers. On some level it makes sense for […]
Readers Without Borders
I don’t just feel sad; I feel like an accomplice in the murder. Since I’m a Jewish mother, and we specialize in guilt— I can’t help feeling guilty about taking part in killing bookstores. What makes it worse is that technically this is a crime of passion—since there are few things I love more than […]
The wedding curse
We were married 17 years ago today—but we’re not celebrating. The problem isn’t the state of the union—but the date of the union. Flashback to 1994. It’s my second marriage—a small wedding on short notice—and it involves complicated logistics— work, two sets of kids, and me relocating from Los Angeles to Carmel. To settle my […]
Motherhood and destiny
Females are built for motherhood. It’s the central fact of women’s existence since the dawn of time. Motherhood is at the core of how women are defined–by ourselves and society. Yet increasingly, it’s not the case for many of us—according to the latest census, almost 46 % of women up to age 44 are childless. […]
Caring and Sharing
As I write this, my friend Dana is hauling herself up and down the hills of San Francisco with thousands of other participants on the Avon Walk. I’m sure I speak for other survivors, to say how grateful we feel to know that someone has your name on their shirt and your face in their […]