just enough light

I went to visit a man who had visited our church. That was something we did in that Baptist church in the 70s, pay a visit to whomever comes to visit us, to see if they want to join or if we can be of service to them in some way. I was a young, […]

For me, gratitude and grief often go together. This morning provided me with an example. As I engaged in my morning time of reading and writing, a sporadic activity I loosely call “a discipline,” the reading admonished me to “assume my creativity is of critical importance.” Only with that assumption will I take it seriously […]

I took a few minutes Sunday morning to be still and to consider what I might focus on with my time and my writing this week. I asked myself, “What is Lent about for me?” An answer came quickly, gratitude and grief. The answer was so natural and spontaneous, it seemed it was simply waiting […]

Frustration, that systemic discontent with my life, is a vague thing. Rarely can I identify the source of my frustration, and when I can, it’s trivial: it’s too noisy to get anything done, I don’t have enough time to get started on that, I have too many things on today’s to-do list, I don’t think […]

“Nothing is quite right, though, if we were forced to admit it, nothing is really wrong either.” Well, that little statement by Joan Chittister pretty much sums up most of my waking hours. Chittister is writing about frustration. I don’t know if frustration is a uniquely human experience, but even if other animals share this […]

‘Tis the season of Lent. As religious seasons go, this is my favorite. One reason it is my favorite is that you don’t have to be particularly religious for Lent to be meaningful. For me, Lent is about being aware of many things that I too often ignore. Things like gratitude, grief, life’s impermanence, and […]

Raymond was the crossing guard at one of the street corners between our house and the elementary school my son attended. He was retired, about 20 years older than I. Raymond had learned the first name of every child that he helped across the street, and he learned the first name of most of the […]

My Aunt Janet died at age 89. Her ashes were buried in the cemetery in Needham, MA this weekend near her parents, my grandparents. Born in 1930, she was the youngest of my mother’s siblings. She was an outstanding high school basketball player, a teacher  in her early adult years, and an ordained minister for […]

Fear shows itself in many ways. Fear shows itself honestly, prompting us to pull back, to cautiously evaluate an unclear situation before moving forward. Fear may also show itself dishonestly, as false bravado or misplaced aggression. Fearful people lash out. Fear also prompts us to do something unwise and against good reason simply “because I […]

Walter Meller wrote an impassioned opinion article in the Abilene Reporter News on June 13 calling for a return to sanity in our country. I concur with his premise, that we as a nation have lost our “moral underpinnings” and that we must “come to an understanding that honesty, fairness, and morality form the foundation […]