“[Walden Pond] is earth’s eye,” Thoreau writes, “looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature.” more»
Brian T. Maurer has practiced pediatrics as a Physician Assistant for 32 years. His "Marginal Notes" column appears periodically in the Cell2Soul Blog. The title "Marginal Notes" is taken from a quote by Henry David Thoreau: "I love a broad margin to my life."
The Doctor by Sir Luke Fildes, 1887
There is much more to the art of healing than just closing a surgical incision, dressing a wound or writing a prescription. Medical practice is after all the stuff of life; and because literature historically has been an attempt to capture the essence of what it means to be alive, it is small wonder that the two complement each other so beautifully.
None of us can be all things to all men; but we can certainly make some fumbling attempts to alleviate suffering in the world and bear one another’s burdens as best we can. As Rilke so aptly put it, perhaps if we learn to love the questions themselves, we can one day live on into the answers. more»
Brian T. Maurer has practiced pediatrics as a Physician Assistant for thirty years. His "Marginal Notes" column appears periodically in the Cell2Soul Blog. The title "Marginal Notes" is taken from a quote by Henry David Thoreau: "I love a broad margin to my life."
In his recent column In Defense of Naïve Reading, Professor Robert Pippin speaks to the state of literary criticism as it is taught on university campuses. His contention is that, although the current trend is to scrutinize the literary arts through the lens of the natural scientific research model — with the ultimate end of developing a “science of meaning” — creative works themselves were never crafted to serve research. Rather, their authors penned them as works of art, works meant to speak to us at the deepest level of our being. I was reminded of these words during small group discussion at our recent Cell2Soul gathering on Nantucket. more»
Brian T. Maurer has practiced pediatrics as a Physician Assistant for thirty years. His "Marginal Notes" column appears periodically in the Cell2Soul Blog. The title "Marginal Notes" is taken from a quote by Henry David Thoreau: "I love a broad margin to my life."
How Melville's Ishmael got from Manhattan to New Bedford is unclear; but for the record I drove to Hyannis, taking the Bourne Bridge across the Cape Cod Canal and pulling into the Yarmouth lot shortly before eleven o’clock on a crisp clear Friday autumn morning. The shuttle driver dropped me off at the dock just in time for me to pay my passage on the high-speed ferry to Nantucket.
On board the M/V Iyanough I elbowed my way through the mass of humanity in the main cabin to the upper deck, where I found an open spot on the fantail. I stood at the head of the port ladder and looked out over the harbor as the boat’s engines kicked in. Slowly we backed out of our berth and turned toward the channel that led to the open sea. more»
Brian T. Maurer has practiced pediatrics as a Physician Assistant for thirty years. His "Marginal Notes" column appears periodically in the Cell2Soul Blog. The title "Marginal Notes" is taken from a quote by Henry David Thoreau: "I love a broad margin to my life."
