My husband, now 89, was once a writer and musician.
He is now handicapped.
I found what I was looking for: a project that we could do together at home and have good fights!
It seemed like a slow physical decline which started two years ago when he turned 87.
After several falls in our home and hospitalizations,
Sol now walks with a walker and has trouble using his hands.
He can no longer write or use a computer.
He stays at home except for medical appointments
.However, his heart, blood pressure and mind are like an eighteen-year-old and he's in good spirits most of the time.
I, Sol’s wife of 52 years, and at 78 still in excellent health, had to give up many of my outside activities,
such as the Cummings Center Band, Ukulele Club, and Art Classes.
I also had to take over household chores that Sol liked,
such as cleaning the house, washing dishes, and serving his own breakfast and lunch.
He misses grocery shopping, which was his favorite activity
At first, it was hard for me to accept this total life change.
I was not used to staying at home.
Was there an activity that we could do together?
The answer came from an unexpected source.
Out of the blue, Ted Sturtz, publisher of the New York Journal of Books, contacted me
and asked if I'd be interested in writing book reviews for his journal.
Serendipity!
He had seen my website and noticed that I had written a children's book.
I would not get paid, but would keep the review copies.
At first I ordered children's and young adult books, graphic novels and biographies.
One day, as I was surveying the books available for review, I noticed a book on Chopin.
It was 800 pages!How was I going to get through it?
All of a sudden it hit me.The perfect solution. Sol had been a writer and musician.
I’m going to ask Sol to read it and help me write a review.
We both read the book. I wrote the review. Sol tore the review apart.
He argued, "But your review is too long. Your sentences are too wordy."
And I screamed, "I'm leaving this sentence in!"
I then started ordering books that would interest Sol, such as ones on Debussy, Matisse, the Holocaust, and Feminism.
I found what I had been looking for: a project that we could do together at home and have good fights!
Carol Katz, August 2019
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