"With a Lump in My Throat" by Marion Cohen
– I just kept working every day, knowing I would adjust.
The wisdom of my decision to transfer schools certainly was now in question.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Marion Cohen spent three decades as a mathematics educator before turning to writing. Her three novels and two short story collections focus on characters whose strong connections reflect a variety of emotions such as love, admiration, and courage. Ms. Cohen’s essays have appeared in various online magazines and journals. Presently residing in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Ms. Cohen also enjoys working on exquisite needlepoint projects, such as displayed on the cover of her recent short story collection, Words While Resting on My Pillows.
Marion Cohen
Author’s Talk
I had always kept journals since my early thirties. I often found that the process of writing enabled the soothing of my soul and helped me lend some logic and clarity to any issues plaguing my mind from time to time. In the quiet of late evening hours, I could fill page after page with my very private thoughts. As a mathematics teacher, my work life encompassed mostly numbers and symbols. Equations were fairly sterile, and their solutions were exact, deprived of any ambiguity.
Once I retired, I was able to devote my time back to words that had the power to express emotions long unsaid or examined. In my novels, I have delighted in fashioning stories filled with romance, family relationships and friendships with strong emotional connections. I often fill chapters with much sentimentality.
In my story, With A Lump in My Throat, I attempted to demonstrate the difficulty of making major life decisions. I also wanted to examine the conflicting feelings that cause us to have uncertainty when trying to do right by ourselves. But as I experienced, the future is unknown and what seems to be the best clear path is not always guaranteed. But regardless of the obstacles I suffered, I found that I could be resilient and actually after some time, alter the situation to my advantage. All that is born from the strong connections I have be able to maintain throughout my life.—Marion Cohen
