Recently, I’ve been watching home improvement shows. “Good Bones” features a mother-daughter team of builder/decorators in Indianapolis. The buy “rescue” houses: abandoned buildings that have multiple, serious problems, everything from leaky roofs, fire damage, termites, rampant mold and rotting beams. But the thing that sets this show apart is that Mina and Karen NEVER raze…
Month: July 2020
Weeds … And Us
Happiness must be cultivated. It is like character. It is not a thing to be safely let alone for a moment, or it will run to weeds. Elizabeth Stuart Phelps The weeds keep multiplying in our garden, which is our mind ruled by fear. Rip them out and call them by name. Sylvia Browne No…
Common Prayer
If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. [the Holy Spirit] does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can…
Trees … And Us
We can learn a lot from trees: they’re always grounded but never stop reaching heavenward. – Everett Mamor “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water.Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long…
Stuff … And Us
I think I’m weird. Whenever I’m going on a trip, or having a procedure, I have an overwhelming urge to thoroughly clean my house: walls, rugs, closets, drawers, the whole shebang. As I write this, I am thinking about the kitchen cabinets and all the items I store but never use. I should purge them…
Signs of Our Times
Infirmity
by Theodore Roethke (I went searching for this poem after hearing it quoted on “The West Wing.” It reminds me that each day, from cradle to grave, is a blessing, and that getting older is not for sissies. Now is the only time we have. Let’s enjoy whatever today brings, and live wisely.) ********** In…
Be Happy?
Remember this song from a few years ago? In every life we have some troubleBut when you worry you make it doubleDon’t worry, be happyDon’t worry, be happy now. With everything that’s happening, how are you doing with that? Yeah, me neither. I woke up Monday with a toothache. The dentist says I need a…
Mr. Rogers Says…
“I believe that at the center of the universe there dwells a loving spirit who longs for all that’s best in all of creation, a spirit who knows the great potential of each planet as well as each person, and little by little will love us into being more than we ever dreamed possible. That…
Aging in Place
I have created you and cared for you since you were born. I will be your God through all your lifetime, yes, even when your hair is white with age. I made you and I will care for you. I will carry you along and be your Savior. Isaiah 46:3b-4 Living Bible Old age is not…