Dr. Lisa Belisle

Morning Oats and My Relationship with the Quaker Man

By Lisa M. Belisle, MD, MPH
Originally published November 29, 2007, The Maine Switch

I’ve had an on-and-off relationship with the Quaker man for years. As a youngster, I spent many mornings admiring his broad-brimmed hat and white neck ruffle while eating instant oatmeal flavored with ‘raisins and spice.’ He joined me for ‘apples and cinnamon’ on cool autumn days, and kept me company in the winter with ‘maple and brown sugar.’ His convenient brown-paper packets eased me into my grade school existence.

Meeting Smokers “Where They Are” is Best Way to Help

By Lisa M. Belisle, MD, MPH 
Originally published November 6, 2007, The Maine Switch 

My brother Brian just returned from a four-year stint with the Marines — three of them stationed in Japan. I’m happy to have him home. Though my baby brother and I are 15 years apart in age, we have many things in common. We both enjoy reading, writing and running. We both have our mother’s brown eyes. One significant difference? Brian smokes cigarettes. I do not. 

Reading to the Candy Guy

By Lisa M. Belisle, MD, MPH 
Originally published November 2007, Parent & Family 

Last weekend my 11-year-old handed me Sand Dollar Summer by Kimberly Jones, saying, “You have to read this, Mom. It’s about a girl who lives in Maine for the summer. It’s so good—it even made my teacher cry.” To Abby’s credit, I did enjoy the well-written hardcover. What I enjoyed even more, however, was that I had gotten a literary recommendation from my child. This sweet interaction had been years in the making: beginning the first time I propped Abby in my lap to read her a Sandra Boynton board book.