Cell 2 Soul: The Humane Health Care Blog

My Father's Story

Tamar Hoffmann, a holistic internist in Honolulu, Hawaii graces us with the story of her family's escape from Nazi Germany.  It is a moving tale of an ordinary family in extraordinary times.

"My father was was born in December 1921, the first son of a young orthodox Jewish couple in Kassel, Germany.  He had a blissful childhood, living with his parents, two younger siblings and paternal grandparents in a spacious apartment on Train Station Street (Bahnhoff Strasse).

The kids went to a Hebrew school. My great-grandfather taught them Hebrew even before they started school so they could read and recite the prayers. After school they studied and played music, which had a very important role in their lives..."  You will find Tamar's story captivating and moving:  Download My Father's Story

You may contact the author at Tamar's Email.

Marginal Notes: Out West

 
He had come back east at the beginning of the month to see his family for the holidays.  It was the first Christmas without his grandfather.  The young man had lost his job—got laid off—and left his car at his apartment in Utah.  “Go back,” his landlady had told him.  “Go back east and figure things out.”  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."

A Special Day

A few months ago, Len Hoenig, a Florida internist, sent us an essay which resonated with the "holiday season,"  this dark time when, in the Northern Hemisphere, the light returns as does (for some) hope...  Take it, Len!

"In this Holiday Season we pray for peace on earth and goodwill unto all mankind. It is my hope that the “special day” described in my essay will come to pass."

          "My alarm clock rang.  It was 7 a.m.  It had been a restful night.  I was surprised the hospital had not called, considering that my last admission was quite ill.  He was an elderly man from a nursing home who was admitted at midnight, in septic shock from a urinary tract infection.  I called the ICU and was pleased to learn that the patient had stabilized and was off life support.  Read on... Download A special day

Len can be reached at: gooddocljhATyahoo.com

Ageing II

Well Met
by
Peter Albertson

It was parents' weekend at Williams College in Williamstown, MA, and I was sitting at the bar of Isabella's, my favorite restaurant, in nearby North Adams, nursing my usual club soda. The place was jammed, with perhaps a dozen or more people waiting for tables.  A woman and her three companions came in.  I can't remember two of that party; but I remember sharply the entrance of this youngish middle-aged, handsome, African-American woman and her daughter... to read more see Download WELL MET

Note:  Albertson, "alone and palely loitering" in the Berkshires, describes this chance meeting in poignant detail.  You will enjoy reading more. He can be reached at PA:Email.