ReFire at any age: It’s that time of year…..

By Gail Supplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times How would you finish that phrase? The song finishes that phrase with, “when the world falls in love”. That doesn’t necessarily mean to fall in love romantically. I think it means falling in love with life. I would tweak that phrase a bit by saying; it’s that time of year for spreading love, joy and cheer. The excitement of the holiday season is all...

Inner Nature: Bloody Colors

By Vidya Rajan, Columnist, The Times I got some nice feedback from people who enjoyed my previous article on the similarities between eggs and seeds –two apparently disparate things which have the same function. This month, to celebrate the season of leaf color changes and the season of Halloween (or Hallowe’en), I am going to compare fall leaf colors and the colors of blood. Yes, colors of blood;...

Don’t retire, ReFire: Living in gratitude

By Gail Supplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times Thanksgiving is the holiday in November that just about everybody celebrates, and with that, thoughts and sentiments of gratitude start to surface because after all, that’s what Thanksgiving is all about, giving thanks. Beginning on the first of November, posts start popping up on several different social media platforms with people sharing what they are...

Inner Nature: Eggs and Seeds

By Vidya Rajan, Columnist, The Times I was working in my garden, doing the regular maintenance tasks of weeding and planning my fall plantings. I was planning on gathering seeds from some of my favorite flowers to replant. As I worked, I’d disturb a rock or something (a military joke) and find a germinating weed seed, or a cluster of ants eggs. They were everywhere. Seeds and eggs. Then it struck...

Don’t retire, ReFire: A hop, skip and a slide into the next year!

By Gail Supplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times It’s hard to believe that we are in the last quarter of the year. It feels like just yesterday we entered 2021. In the beginning of the year, there was hope, with the introduction of the vaccine, that we’d be on the other side of the pandemic by now. Regrettably, that is not what has transpired. Many of us were starting to make plans to gather and travel...

Don’t retire, ReFire: Making peace in our world

By Gail Suplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times Does this sound like a tall order to you? It shouldn’t be a tall order but alas, it is. For centuries we’ve fought for peace and in the fighting, many casualties occurred and still do, to this day. Many songs have been written and many prayers have been prayed for the hope of peace. Is it possible to make peace in a world so divided and with so many different...

Do it yourself dental products aren’t always what they appear to be

By Dr. Stephanie McGann, DMD FAGD, Columnist, The Times Don’t get fooled. There are a lot of crazy things going on in the world right now, and now we need to watch out for the return of the “snake oil” salesmen.  While we all know that the myriad of “lose weight while you sleep” pills are bogus, now we have to beware of folks preying on unsuspecting people with dental needs.  Everytime...

Inner Nature: Invertebrate mouths

By Vidya Rajan, Columnist, The Times I have always been fascinated by mouths and the teeth and tongues that lie inside them. Mouths are both structurally amazing and functionally diverse. We eat with our mouths, use it to communicate with sounds, express emotions, and also with breathing functions. Mouths contain tongues, one of the softest, strongest, and most sensitive muscles in our body, but they...

Don’t Retire, ReFire: Never stop improving

By Gail Supplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times August is my birthday month and each year, just as I do for the turning of each New Year, I reflect on where I am and what I want to accomplish, while being very aware that time is a tickin’. One of the key components to living an enriched, fulfilled life is to never stop improving and learning. Most of us strive to improve ourselves each day, relating...

Don’t Retire, ReFire: If not now, when?

By Gail Supplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times There are many influential people, like Eckhart Tolle who have made this statement, which only validates its gravity. If not now, when? Each month, I like to think that my messages are thought provoking and will raise the level of consciousness in the reader. If we look at our lives as a string of todays, we may understand and more fully grasp the importance...