Larry the K's Lineup

  There’s still time to share your thoughts about how cancer has affected your life by joining the Slam Cancer initiative being held by the 24 th annual Relay For Life for the American Cancer Society in partnership with the Attleboro Public Library. Slam Cancer invites people of all ages regardless of where they live to share their poems or essays of up to 500 words on the topic of “Slam Cancer: How I’ve been touched by the disease” by emailing them to slamcancer21@gmail.com through Friday, April 29. (Late entries will be accepted through May 3). The submissions period again coincides with the observance of National Poetry Month. Submissions could be a story about surviving cancer, caring for a loved one who is battling cancer, recalling someone you miss who succumbed to cancer --- or anything else that describes how the disease has affected your life. Participants will again be given the option of reading their submissions at an outdoor gathering being planned for 6 p.m. Friday,...

(This column was published on Tuesday, April 19 in The Sun Chronicle of Attleboro, MA. The link to column on the newspaper’s website is: https://www.thesunchronicle. com/opinion/columns/larry- kessler-lets-slam-cancer- together/article_8dc84ab5- 1d02-53dc-a906-eb6fe4b20987. html The Relay For Life of Greater Attleboro, a major fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, was first held in 1999 on the North Attleboro High School track, and I’ve been a part of it since its second year in 2000. There are many reasons for my longtime involvement in the event, which this year will be held June 17-18 at the Norton Middle School. Most of them revolve around the fact that cancer has touched scores of friends and relatives, and I take pride in paying tribute to them at each relay by lighting luminaries in honor of cancer survivors and in memory of victims. But the overriding reason for my participation as a team member and volunteer is the need to raise awareness about the disease. For th...

  This column was published today (Saturday, April 16) in The Sun Chronicle of Attleboro, MA. The second of two Passover Seders will be held tonight, while Christians worldwide will be celebrating Easter tomorrow (April 17). And, the Muslim holiday of Ramadan is currently being observed as well, making it a good time to wish for some hope in the midst of these dark, bleak and depressing times. Link to the column as it appears on The Sun Chronicle's website: h ttps://www.thesunchronicle. com/opinion/columns/larry- kessler-the-search-for- freedom-and-light/article_ cca82042-7b08-5cc5-a9db- 50e8343f9e36.html ***** Easter and Passover, as often occurs, overlap this weekend. The Christian Holy Week will culminate in Easter Sunday tomorrow, while Passover began Friday night with the first of two ritualistic meals. Both holidays are being observed against the backdrop of a world changed forever, first by the global pandemic and then by the brutal invasion of Ukraine. Those twin crises...

Opening Day for the Red Sox on Friday, April 8 ended with a 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Bronx Bombers in Yankee Stadium, but the day was a success for this longtime fan because my younger daughter, Alana, asked to have a catch with me --- something we hadn't done in a long while. With temperatures rising to the mid-60s, we enjoyed playing catch for close to an hour on our front lawn while the game blared on the radio perched on my front steps. Despite the Red Sox' tough defeat, the day was enjoyable --- a tumble that I took on the lawn notwithstanding. That happened as I was backpedaling to catch the ball, when my foot hit a divot in the lawn and I tumbled on my back. Luckily, the fall resulted in me only getting the wind knocked out of me. Good thing I have a hard head, though I've been feeling a little sensation back there since the fall. I was fortunate to escape further injury, but it was a small price to pay for having a catch on Opening Day. DOG ATE THE BALL: The cat...