Distillation: My Secret Sauce to Storytelling

By Abby Alten Schwartz

In March 2020, days before the world shut down, my friend called, frantic. She needed me to check on her ex-husband who lived in my cul-de-sac. Their 16-year-old son had tried to wake him, but he was unresponsive and my friend was still 40 minutes away.

I called 911 and took off running, straight into their former bedroom, where I performed CPR until the EMTs took over.

Neighbors congregated outside the house while emergency workers tried unsuccessfully to res...