B.J. Stolbov reflects on how three simple phrases—"Not my problem," "I don’t know," and "I have no opinion"—help him cut through the noise of daily life. With warmth and honesty, he shares how these words keep him grounded, free from unnecessary stress, and focused on what really matters. His personal story might just inspire you to embrace a simpler, more peaceful approach to life in 2025.

In Waiting for Godot, Estragon and Vladimir’s squabbles capture life’s absurdity and, as Eric Lucas reflects in this essay, the vital role of human connection. Lucas draws on Beckett’s tumultuous life and his own encounters with the play to reveal its message: amid a chaotic, uncertain world, our shared bonds—however imperfect—affirm our existence and sustain us.

On an ordinary thrift store visit for sweats, Irene Sardanis' life took a drastic turn. A fall resulted in a broken hip and a challenging recovery journey. The journey to recovery was tough, but her husband's unwavering support made all the difference. Humbled and more grateful, she embraces her new self, learning to navigate life with patience and resilience. Discover her inspiring story of transformation.

Embark on an unexpected journey with Carolyn Handler Miller through Vietnam and Cambodia, where an accidental injury confines her to a wheelchair. From VIP treatment at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum to forming bonds in the 'wheelchair women's club,' this is a tale of resilience, camaraderie, and unexpected discoveries amid unforeseen challenges.

Embark on an extraordinary odyssey with Dr. Allen Steven Lycka as he defies the odds, conquering the Minnie Mine trail, not as an athlete, but as a survivor of misdiagnosed ALS. Tackling the uphill battle with a weakened body and unwavering determination, he weaves a narrative of resilience, unexpected kindness, and the triumphant spirit that prevails against life's most formidable challenges.

In a gripping account, Eric Lucas recounts a near-death experience due to drugs and alcohol four decades ago. Handcuffed to a gurney, he shares an exchange with a paramedic, leading into his journey of addiction recovery. Lucas emphasizes the daily commitment to sobriety and expresses gratitude for the support that has kept him going.

Nature-lover Bindu Gopal Rao shares her transformative journey from expecting too much from a wildlife safari to finding joy in the unexpected. Her heartwarming story serves as a reminder that the true beauty of the wild lies in embracing its unpredictability.

Join Noor Anand Chawla on a powerful exploration of self-empowerment and the celebration of individuality as she explores the transformative impact of Indian art, challenging conventional beauty ideals and inspiring a new perspective on self-worth.

One day Megan Moore made the courageous decision to quit her job and embark on a cross-country road trip with no set plan. Along the way, she finds freedom in being alone, experiencing new things, and meeting people who have taken the road less traveled. This uplifting story reminds us that it is never too late to take risks and explore the world around us.

A snowy March weekend hike and bike in upstate New York reminds Kit Fruscione that adventure can be found anywhere and that creating your own sunshine is important, even in the cold and gray days of winter.

At age sixty-four, Ellen Schecter signed up for a Tour du Mont Blanc hike despite her fear of heights. Pushing through nerves, she managed to trek along the steep and narrow trails, climb a ladder secured to the side of a mountain and cross a long swinging bridge high above a canyon. But it all came to a shuddering halt when she found herself petrified on all fours atop the rocky terrain. The mantra she had been repeating—“Feel the fear and do it anyway”—was no longer working.

Six months after losing her partner John Lamkin, Susanna Starr wrote this remarkable letter to Judith Fein, the executive editor of YourLifeIsATrip.com. We share Susanna’s letter with permission as a chronicle of her journey through loss and a source of honest inspiration and insight.

Joan Virginia Allen was 80 years old when she told her 50-something-year-old daughter Cami: “When I grow up, I want to be like you.” Thus began an amazing journey that included travel, exploration, inspiration, transformation, and the creation of Allen’s first business.

When a challenging, off-trail hike puts Nancy King’s apprehensions about aging and her physical abilities to the test, she comes out feeling strong and elated.

Cliff Simon blamed his mother for much of his discomfort and unhappiness, recounting her faults and his wounds, over and over, and with great humor to hide his sadness. But now, in retrospect, with the insights and compassion of age, he revisits the relationship and his role in it.

Can charity be as contagious as COVID? This was what Marlan Warren pondered during her walk home one morning after a surprising encounter with a man on the street in her East Hollywood neighborhood.

Shortly after Jules Older’s 80th birthday and his wife Effin’s 77th, they moved. They left their home in San Francisco, crossed ocean and equator, and landed in New Zealand. This wasn't just a visit; they’d bought one-way tickets and weren’t planning a return.

With travel out of the picture, Cliff Simon found a silver lining: More time to spend on his precious porch swing, where life is perfect. And a lot cheaper.

To lower her anxiety over the past few months, Nancy King has found solace in solitary hikes along Santa Fe trails and extra time to purrdle, a word she’s coined during the pandemic, with her dying rescue-cat Mia.

For many, knowing where they come from can provide a deep sense of community. For Elyn Aviva, however, this period of global political chaos and pandemic has revealed an ancestral history of seeking refuge from war, oppression, and persecution. Could this explain the innate terror and compulsion to flee she experiences in times of crisis?

Cliff Simon has a history of accidental injuries. He’s been bandaged and restrained in the Bronx, the East Village, Harlem, Vero Beach, Austin, and Birmingham, with narrow escapes in Santa Fe and Queens. Recently, while recovering from a bone break from yet another fall, he found himself thinking about his accident-proneness. Was he cursed? A klutz? Or was there more to it?

In 1996, a then undiagnosed neurological condition had Cliff Simon fearing for his life with no hope in sight. Two months later everything had changed for the better. Now, when the gloom-and-doom media report depressing stories of the virus, of people mired in hatred, or science ignored and leaders mis-leading, he remembers how terrified he was in December of 1996. And, how quickly circumstances can improve.

Elyn Aviva decided that culling her computer contact list would be a productive Corona project. Easy, right? In theory perhaps, but the reality wasn’t quite the cleanup she’d anticipated.

Like many people during this pandemic, Cliff Simon has been baking. Baking cakes has been a lifelong pleasure but under the lens of quarantine, baking and sharing have taken on new meaning and revealed new insights.

Making plans in Fez for a last-minute Sahara excursion during Ramadan proved to be a bit of a gamble for retired American Michael Papas. As he handed over a stack of cash, he wondered if he was being foolish or if trusting a stranger in a foreign land would pay off.

Thirty-seven days into self-isolation Ellen Barone asked her husband Hank, “Are you lonely?” Like much of the world’s population, they are physical-distancing and staying home to help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19. Would this, she worried, lead to loneliness? And, in turn, to biological effects as deadly as the virus itself? Instead, isolation has brought clarity to something they’d innately suspected all along.

BJ Stolbov, an American expat living in the Philippines, reminisces about changes in human freedom of movement and the futility of nationalistic boundaries during a global health crisis.

Elyn Aviva has spent more than half of her life going on, studying, or writing about pilgrimage—specifically, the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. Today, as she adjusts to the disorientation of isolation, she poses the question: Could it be that like a pilgrimage, this pandemic offers an opportunity to journey inward and engage in deep self-exploration?

Each one of us is adjusting to the new normal of social distancing and self-isolation in different ways. We thought we’d open a door to the private lives of our writers, so you can see what they are feeling and thinking and doing —expressed in 25 words or less.