Which memories will we carry to the grave?
My father is the three-year-old boy, looking to his right. My father’s memories I clicked on the sound file and heard my dear father’s early 1990's, post-stroke voice, recounting memories from his childhood. He had dictated a letter to my older sister for his...
A season for giving thanks and preparing
Saturday evening, after the sun set low over the Three Ridges, Keith and I sat down for dinner and, as usual, said a prayer, giving thanks for all our blessings. “Thank you, Lord, for this wonderful day and for the beauty of your creation. Thank you for...
Life Together: Fellowship, Community, Communion
Written by German Lutheran pastor, theologian, and anti-Nazi dissident Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together is a classic guide to Christian living. “Christianity means community through Jesus Christ and in Jesus Christ. No Christian community is more or less...
Soul Care When You’re Grieving
Cato and Freya have been grieving, since Heathcliff died in June. Twelve-year-old Freya keeps mostly to herself, but three-year-old Cato has seemed lost. For a while, he refused breakfast, as Heathcliff had toward the end, and curled in his crate. Freya has...
Problem solving: three incidents, four lessons
“Internet’s down,” I said to Keith early Wednesday morning, initiating problem solving. All indicators showed connection, but the browser—as here—said otherwise. Keith rebooted the system but to no avail. So, I used my phone to email Firefly—to establish a written...
Still, Still, Still – adjective, noun, adverb
The oak tree was still, silent and motionless but for the wind, rustling the leaves, which had turned brown. The wind no longer challenged the tree to grow and strengthen itself. And, like the Tower of Pisa, the oak no longer stood straight but leaned precariously...