Natalie Goldberg - the same Natalie Goldberg that challenged me to attack the why of my writing life - is nothing, if not full of challenges. If you haven't picked up Writing Down the Bones yet, you should. For a bit I used each 1-2 page essay as a writing prompt, but sometimes I just needed to keep... Continue Reading →
Grist
It has been said that tough things, painful things, are grist for the writing mill. Recently, friend of mine threw that one out there second-hand—the roll of her eyes and snort of derision reaching through the email screen. She offered it up to a mutual writing buddy, in case they might draw any more comfort... Continue Reading →
Huddle Up
On the set of the smash Broadway musical Hamilton, before each and every performance, Chris Jackson leads the cast in pep talk and prayer. "Let's agree that for the next two and a half hours, this is the most important thing we'll do in our lives." Chris Jackson, for those 2 and a half hours, transforms... Continue Reading →
Dinner and a Show
I am enjoying a mediocre Chicken Marsala on the lowest deck of Jake's Supper Club when my attention is stolen from my companions by a puttering Murray lawn tractor. Across the river, an older gentleman, clad in 1980's swim trunks and a matching yellow life jacket, both faded and stretched well beyond their intended usage,... Continue Reading →
Home
We're home. Oh, man, are we home. It was a rollercoaster of a trip, really, from an underwhelming rowhouse rental in DC, to glorious visit with beautiful friends all along the East Coast. From a transmission that thought it might want to drop out on us, to operational AC for the entire trip (Woot! Woot!). From... Continue Reading →
Just in Time
I've spent the last week not being able to move my head much. Torticollis. Thanks to virus or misstep, I am not sure, but I am sure that short of childbirth, breaking bones, and events involving large incisions, this has been the most pain I've ever been in. Yes, that definitely includes the back-spasm incident... Continue Reading →
Buying a car
We're buying a car. I'd post about something else, but really, buying a car is kind of all-consuming. What makes the purchase really interesting is finding yourself squarely in the $2-3K bracket. There is not much car out there for that much $, but alas, there we are. The minivan was given its last rites... Continue Reading →
9
As I sit here there are 9 Rubik's Cubes within my field of vision. Things have gotten out of hand. For the record, my personal best time for the 3x3x3 is 1:25. (there are also 3 timers nearby) I'm getting faster, but my kids are getting faster... faster. I am soon to be left in... Continue Reading →
Do thy work
On Tuesday of Holy Week, as we approach the Passion, we are often spent. Lent has wrung us dry, we are expectant yet exhausted, and we long for the warm fuzzy feelings of different days. If we are to travel with Christ, we must have more than feelings to fuel our faith. George MacDonald, mentor... Continue Reading →
Holding on
We're coming up on the final days of Lent. It's been quite the journey. Today, just a short reminder of what drawing near to God entails, because it is so easy to forget: People in earlier generations had more familiarity with the characteristics of fire than we do. Until a hundred years ago, there was... Continue Reading →
Adoration of the Cross
Three times it has snowed on the backs of the robins; Julio counted. Still, I'm not sure we're done with winter; the week ahead looks bleak. But today, after a week of bizarre blizzards and derechos, has been another wonderful respite from the cold, another taste of the coming spring. It is the Third Sunday... Continue Reading →
How quickly we forget OR Julio the Robin returns
I thought he was a cardinal. You see, we have several male cardinals who love the tippy-topmost perch on our toothpick pine; it is the quintessential podium from which to preach and warble. If they danced, I am sure this would be where their moves would be displayed. The cardinals claim the pine more in the summer,... Continue Reading →
