Perspective
A string of petty annoyances happened last week. My author web site caroleduff.com got flagged for malware; the living room smoke alarm associated with our security system alerted low battery even after we replaced it; making a simple checkup appointment turned...
Raise your hands a little higher
The air conditioning in the Rotunda’s Multipurpose Room at the University of Virginia was set to sub-zero. New arrivals, refugees from last week’s steam bath in Charlottesville, might have welcomed the chill. But those of us who’d stayed from the previous workshop...
Try and Trophy
Last week, a rejection email showed up in my inbox. “Although I don't find your essay right for our needs, I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to consider it,” the editor wrote. Nice Try but no Trophy. Submitting a piece for publication is like auditioning,...
On Being Late
I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Romans 7:15 (NRSV) Thursday late afternoon, headed northbound on route 151, I waited six cars back from the attendant holding a Stop/Slow flip sign. Streams of...
Models, Mentors, and Mercy
Mothers Day. Fathers Day. Mothers and Fathers, models and mentors. Model: example, replica, ideal Mentor: adviser, guide, coach Although I wrote here about my mother as one of my mentors, I think by definition she was more of a model to me. In some ways, I...