Author Archives: Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

“I Do Not Believe” by Elyas Alavi, translated by Fatemeh Shams & Leonard Schwartz

Award-winning Afghani poet reflects on the fear of losing a loved one to violence
Posted on September 26, 2021 by Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

My beloved if Death be here for you Let it be in tuberculosis’ form Or the form of bitter cold, Not as prey of suicide bombing. You should have the time To review your memories, To review the particulars of … Continue reading →

Posted in The Next Chapter | Leave a comment

End-of-Life Options and the Law: Understanding VSED vs MAID

An interview with law professor and bioethicist Dr. Thaddeus Pope
Posted on September 14, 2021 by Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

Dr. Thaddeus Pope is a law professor and bioethicist whose work focuses on end-of-life options and patient rights. He teaches at Mitchell Hamline University’s Health Law Institute and received a Fulbright Scholar Award in 2020 to research Canadian and American … Continue reading →

Posted in Professional Advice | 1 Comment

Vaccine Boosters to be Available in September Pending Approval

Amid concern over waning immunity, officials plan to approve a third dose of Moderna and Pfizer vaccines
Posted on August 31, 2021 by Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

With only 52% of the nation fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and a growing number of breakthrough infections occurring due to the Delta variant, there is concern that the current vaccine dosage is not enough to keep elderly and immunocompromised people … Continue reading →

Posted in Something Special | Leave a comment

“Notes on the Existence of Ghosts” by Franny Choi

A young poet explores the curious nature of absence, and the many shapes it can take
Posted on August 23, 2021 by Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

I understand the gravity of a train from the empty space and afterbirth air I encounter when I run down to the platform twenty seconds too late. It is the same with all things of such weight – to know … Continue reading →

Posted in The Next Chapter | Leave a comment

Newly Discovered Unmarked Graves Point to Abuse at “Residential Schools”

Remains have been found at the sites of former boarding schools for Indigenous children in Canada
Posted on August 11, 2021 by Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

Starting in the late 1800s, hundreds of thousands of Indigenous children in Canada were sent to federally funded, church-run “residential schools” to be forcibly assimilated into Western colonial culture. This was part of a broader effort to strip Indigenous citizens … Continue reading →

Posted in Something Special | Leave a comment

“St. Roch Blues” by Hurray for the Riff Raff

The folk band sings a haunting elegy for friends lost too soon in New Orleans
Posted on August 4, 2021 by Betsy Arant (Blog Writer, SevenPonds)

New Orleans is a city where death seems to mingle freely with life. Its jazz funerals are legendary, its cemeteries are tourist hot spots. Ghost tours run nightly through the French Quarter, and every year on Mardi Gras day, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Expressive Music | Leave a comment