16 Comments

Those were heady days. I hope Natasha sees your column and responds. I'd also love to know how she's doing. The photo was taken on the steps of my front porch on Shore Avenue in Groton. I remember we had the flags of our two nations flying on that porch.

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That was a glorious event. I loved your porch overlooking the water, and how beautiful and gracious your home was. And what a soft summer evening! Unforgettable.

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It's a comfort to remember more than half the country did NOT vote for this cruel, self-enriching Oligarchy. After a period of shocked withdrawal, Americans are re-woke, organizing, and protesting to expose the carnage. The midterms are 2 years away. There will be unspeakable damage. But we'll throw the GOP looters out, build back guardrails, and reinstate the rule of law. #resist

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Beautifully told. I wonder too about friends I made when I lived in Germany…long long before FB or the dark web arose.

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What a beautiful letter and gorgeous photo, and how much the world has changed since we trained as journalists in the 80s! We believed then that good writing could change the world. And I believe you still can, my friend!

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Honestly, over my career I’ve probably written 5,000 opinion pieces. And I have changed very little. But at the end of the day, the measure should be what we each stand for. That’s it; that’s the ballgame for all of us. Love you, Dot!

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Beautifully written. I hope your friend is okay.

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So do I. I'd love to see her again but that possibility seems far away now.

She was very impatient, which made her a great journalist. During a meeting in St. Petersburg once, she was bored and restless, and grabbed my arm and said, "Come with me." We left, and she said, "I want you to interview my mother-in-law. She was 16 during the seige of Leningrad." We went to her mother-in-laws apartment, and we had the most fascinating interview! I loved it. That's my friend Natasha!

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Natasha was so impressive — fearless. That year, when Yeltsin stood on a tank and it looked as if a crackdown was coming, she and her staff posted broadside news reports at the office in St. Petersburg, and in between assembled Molotov cocktails for when the tanks would come. (They didn't, that time.) We thought enlightenment had arrived. We were wrong.

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We were so wrong. Sadly.

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Oh, Mayra! I know we all hope Natasha is okay! And we are are doing what we can to keep our country okay. Thank you for writing this. May you be well also.

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Thank you, Suzette! You too!

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Beautiful memories. Sad for me to see Putin offering to split with Trump, the minerals in the parts of Ukraine he has seized from that country. Resist!

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Wonderful!!!

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May she be safe: May she be fighting.

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Thanks for the memory, Maura. Also good to see Reid posting here. The Day still lives.

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