As much as the Pulitzer is the hallmark of journalism, I think what I love the most is when somebody says they took my column and it's in their wallet. I have had people open their wallet and show me a corner of a column.

Growing old beats the alternative - dying young.

Even if you have nothing in your wallet, nothing can keep you from having a great summer. You can listen to crickets sing you to sleep, trace the Big Dipper, breathe in the stars, run through a sprinkler, host a cartwheel contest in the front yard.

Baking happens with ingredients that last for months and come to life inside a warm oven. Baking is slow and leisurely.

Cancer is messy and scary. You throw everything at it, but don't forget to throw love at it. It turns out that might be the best weapon of all.

If baking is any labor at all, it's a labor of love. A love that gets passed from generation to generation.

No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.