Stu was relieved. At 88, he laid awake at night fretting that his childhood memories would disappear when he died. How would his grandchildren know the details of his emigration from China to San Francisco as a little boy. Who would describe his parents’ courage and fears and their resilience despite all the adversity they faced? If not for his parents’ resolve, he knows there’s no way he would have had such a successful life. The same goes for his children and grandchildren.

Just knowing we would be writing all of this down lifted a huge weight from his shoulders.

You might regret not asking your parents to record their stories, but would you ever regret asking them to do it? Put this way, the answer is kind of obvious.

Have you shied from this because you imagine they'll think you're focused on their mortality? Or are you assuming they would have mentioned it if it was something they wanted to do? Or maybe it's because your relationship is complicated. I totally get it.

But it doesn't have to be a touchy subject.

It was the basket. Five minutes before the start of services, my doorbell rang and there before me was a beautiful, bountiful basket. I was moved to tears.

A teacher of mine has been talking about the imperative to create a ‘culture of connection’. At first, I thought “I do that.” But, at the same time, it’s just so hard to avoid being consumed by negativity, even when I know it triggers my migraines. It was time to stop feeding my echo chamber and choose positive action in its place, in gestures big and mostly small.

Remember the scene in Keeping the Faith where Ben Stiller as Rabbi Jake and Ed Norton as Father Brian have an exchange about Jake’s rabbi hero-card collection? Seeing that, I thought “Ah! There are others out there like me!”

As the shabbaton weekend approached, I ‘d get more excited and anxious. You see, as an elementary school student at the hebrew day school I attended, I always felt like I was wearing a mask.

Dear Parents of the Class of 2020,

"I feel bad for the seniors." How many times have you said or heard that since March? But now that graduation season is here, that lament has turned to joy and trust me, we are all eager to celebrate! These graduates are shaping a collective experience they’ll never forget. And parents, through your posts and special messages to your children you are literally writing and preserving a piece of this story.

Familial gives clients a much needed break during this difficult and uncertain time. Like Classic Familial, Petite Familial crafts letters of a lifetime to be shared with family and friends. This new model was created to make Familial more accessible right now.

We’ve found a rhythm. But we still worry about our personal and collective well-being. Stress is unavoidable and it can show up in some pretty unflattering ways. But here’s the upside: our stress reveals what’s most important to us and, with a little effort, we can put it to good use. In last week’s NY Times, Kari Leibowitz and Alia Crum offered a simple technique to change how we react to our stress in order to improve our health and outlook.

Over the coming weeks, many of us will be forced to reimagine our spring holiday traditions. Whether holding a virtual Passover seder or having an Easter brunch for two, we need to take advantage of our current shelter-in-place lives to explore the real essence of these celebrations -- community, renewal, reflection.

Close your eyes and think about your holiday. Perhaps an image arises. What key aspect or feeling emerges? It may be possible to replicate that quality in a different way.

Take a minute to close your eyes and imagine your mother and father.  Think about what you love most about them. What traits do you admire and what have you learned from them? Are there any memories or idiosyncrasies that make you smile?  Have you ever told your parents how you see them? Or have you shared your thoughts with other family?  It’s one beautiful way to honor your parents.

Don’t you wish you could know more about your grandparents and great grandparents? When we asked people of varying ages what they’d want to know, they jumped at the chance with questions ranging from the basics of everyday life to the toughest decisions their relatives faced. Here’s a small sampling…

Did you know that for the first time there are more people in the United States over the age of 65 than under the age of 18? Isn’t that amazing? Just ask the people at Gen2Gen who are driven to realize the potential of older and younger generations working side-by-side for change. Intergenerational connections are good for everyone.

Picture this: a 17-year-old girl playing a weekly scrabble game with her 78-year-old grandfather. Or a 14-year-old making a different dessert every weekend with his 68-year-old neighbor and former bakery owner. Think about the kids in your life. Do they have these kinds of relationships with an older person?

Harry travels with his son and daughter to see the Cubs play in a different stadium every year. They’ve now been to 33 games and never missed a season. On Mother’s Day, Julie hikes with her parents and children, a ritual her grandmother started when Julie was six. Susan’s family plays Rummicubes after Thanksgiving dinner, a tradition she began as a way of keeping everyone engaged after a big meal. Seth and his friends go out for Chinese food on Christmas Eve, something many of them had done growing up.

Some traditions stretch across generations and others are just being started. Either way, clients oftentimes describe the twists they’ve incorporated to make these traditions their own.