Search


Counting on the Other Side of Cancer: Everyday Magic, Day 984
When life feels out of control, I start counting. I first noticed this habit/neurosis/coping mechanism when I was in labor for my oldest...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Sep 8, 20193 min read


When Life Reboots You: Everyday Magic, Day 980
I realize that all of us get rebooted in our lives, and usually more than once, catalyzed by a medical diagnosis, a big loss and plunge...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jul 28, 20193 min read


When the World Opens Its Heart to My Ears, Cicadas and All: Everyday Magic, Day 979
For a writer who loves reading, movies, watching James Corden Cross-walk theater videos, and visually scanning the world for so much of...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jul 11, 20192 min read

“God’s Got You, Baby”: Everyday Magic, Day 976
That’s what Cynthia said as she led me back to the surgery prep room when I told her I was scared. “And don’t you worry because God made...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jun 17, 20193 min read

Preparing to Be Unprepared and Other Quirks of Cancer: Everyday Magic, Day 975
As I get ready for surgery at high noon on Friday to implant a teeny-tiny gold bowl bearing radiation under my right eye, I realize how...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jun 11, 20193 min read

Naming the Turtles on a Healing Journey: Everyday Magic, Day 974
Throughout my healing journey — the cancer diagnosis and visits with three oncologists, the big-time scans and fears, the joys and...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
May 27, 20195 min read

Back at the Cancer Rodeo: Everyday Magic, Day 972
When I had breast cancer 17 years ago, I learned some things about resilience, the ability to bounce back. There’s nothing like being...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
May 1, 20194 min read

There But for Grace: Everyday Magic, Day 963
Eighteen years ago, we almost lost our youngest son Forest in a car accident involving black ice, three kids and me in a van, and the...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jan 31, 20192 min read

Surprises From 2018: Everyday Magic, Day 960
In reading Kate Bowler’s evocative essay, “How Cancer Changes Hope” and revising poems for my next book, How Times Moves, I’ve been...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Dec 31, 20183 min read

Lightening Up for the Solstice: Everyday Magic, Day 959
Tomorrow the world turns over: our shortening days stop in their tracks, and the light begins lengthening those days for months to come....
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Dec 20, 20182 min read


Loving Rachel Rolfs: Everyday Magic, Day 821
Rachel, her brother Micah and mom LaVetta in 1983 This was a girl who grew up in the background, preferring to help others shine and...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Oct 22, 20142 min read


Welcome to the Dialogue and Friendship Dinner: With An Outstretched Hand
Thanks to Eyyup Esen, the force of friendship between this event Tonight I was honored to give the welcome and a welcoming poem at the...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Apr 29, 20143 min read


On the Other Side of Surgery: Everyday Magic, Day 760
Sunset with a tunnel of red light the first night home Time is a strange substance that envelopes us. A day ago, a week ago, a year...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jan 17, 20143 min read


The Dog Lives To See Another Day (or Week, or Month): Everyday Magic, Day 758
We’ve never had to put down an animal before. Past ones have vanished, been eaten by coyotes (that’s why we have indoor cats these days),...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jan 4, 20142 min read


“It’s Not Just a Body; It’s An Adventure”: Everyday Magic, Day 753
This is what a dear friends of mine said about having a kidney removed today. The kidney had to go because it harbored a tumor, and the...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Dec 23, 20132 min read

The Achilles Heel That Lets the Light In: Everyday Magic, Day 745
Where have I been lately? Lying in bed, half asleep, trying to bat away the mild hallucinations of trees turning into armies of pale...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Nov 9, 20132 min read


“I Have My Home in Two Worlds”: Coleman Barks, John Willison, Rumi, Magic Musicians and
With Coleman and John (and a very bright lamp) Last night was one of the shining evenings of my life. Surrounded by lightning and thunder...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Oct 31, 20132 min read


The People Who See Us in the Worst Light Possible: Everyday Magic, Day 722
Not so much a blast from the past but a little breeze brushed me recently, reminding me of both someone many years ago and someone in the...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Jul 31, 20132 min read


The Healing Power of the Body: Everyday Magic, Day 449
I’m always astonished that one day I can feel like thousands of miniature aliens are wreaking havoc on my sinus system, and the next day,...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Nov 27, 20112 min read


An Old Friend Back In My Life: Everyday Magic, Day 414
Gary Lying in the dark on sub-zero nights, Gary and I talked about our lives during this pivotal time: our senior year in college...
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Sep 20, 20113 min read