Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Memory Metal

A nearly occluded carotid artery slowly squeezes off the flow of blood to a woman's brain. Her brain's supply of oxygen and glucose drops dangerously and she slips closer toward a deadly encounter with a stroke.

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Remembering the Future


Remembering calls up our internal record of something now existing only in the past. A memory echoes reality, reverberating forward within our minds.

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

The Gift of Pain

Human language struggles to express the experience of pain, but falters and fails. We cannot help but make circular reference as we attempt to describe it– "it burns like fire," "it pierces like an ice-pick," or "it pounds relentlessly." When it catches us off-guard we blurt out "Ow!" or "Ouch!," and when it takes us beyond all endurance we groan and cry out with inhuman screams.

Thursday, July 2, 2015

A Peculiar Name

The word "peculiar" holds me in its fascination. In common usage we connote "peculiar" as "odd" or "weird." I like those terms as well. And the word– peculiar– even sounds odd. Say it aloud, ten times repetitively, and a strange feeling coats your tongue and palate.