Robin Fasano

What everyone is really hungry for, Mortali says, “is to feel alive, to feel good.” And that is what being in nature is about. “We’re meant to be active and have a relationship with nature.”

Prior to the 20th century, death was tended to in the home. Now, that process can return to the home through home-based funerals or wakes with the help of home funeral guides such as Ann-Elizabeth Barnes who has served that role in Great Barrington for 20 years.

The Pushcart Prize literary award was founded in 1976 to honor and recognize the “best of the small presses and magazines.” Previous recipients include Raymond Carver, Mona Simpson, and Junot Diaz.

Music is a bridge to connect with someone. In fact, neuroscientists have shown that music lights up more parts of the brain than any other stimulus.

Under stress, you don’t realize you can make a different choice, so you keep doing the same thing…you don’t even know there’s another way to be.

Sue Parsley of Lenox Yoga believes the pandemic is an opportunity to learn to trust and let go of our preconceived notions.

The country is in “fight or flight,” its fear mode, said the Rev. Erik Karas of Christ Trinity Church in Sheffield.

With the current COVID-19 pandemic and the center’s temporary closure, Kripalu is connecting to people in the comfort of their homes via online streaming services to make its programs available.

She credits a previous Lakeville, Connecticut, writing group for inspiring her to start her own. The experience bolstered her confidence, encouraged her to persevere, and helped her to believe that she could indeed be a writer.

Death Café events are nationwide and part of a larger movement that originated in Switzerland via sociologist Bernard Crettaz, who believed that talking about death promoted authentic living.