Be like the bird, who pausing in his flight on limb too slight, feels it give way beneath him yet sings, knowing he has wings. Victor Hugo, Les chants du crépuscule (Songs of Dusk), 1836 About the image: Did you spot the bird? I shot the “birdie-in-tree” a few days ago while checking out the … Continue reading Be Like the Bird | #WordlessWednesday
I read a Washington Post article this morning that reported the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations is rising in several U.S. states. The card says it all. It’s hard not to worry, but I am consoling myself with the hope that we are giving birth to something new and healthy. About the Images: I received the … Continue reading Two Cards | Appropriate for These Times | #WordlessWednesday
I am born as the sun, but then turn into the moon, as my blonde hairs turn grayish-white and fall to the ground, only to be buried again, then to be born again, into a thousand suns and a thousand moons “Hymn of the Divine Dandelion,” by Suzy Kassem About the image: Social distancing and … Continue reading A Thousand Moons | #WordlessWednesday
Christmas is not a story of hope. It is hope. –Craig D. Lounsbrough The university held its annual Christmas party yesterday. The theme this year, “Christmas in the Alps,” matched the cold, cold of outdoors. The team always does an amazing job with the decor, and we felt like we were in Switzerland. I’d intended … Continue reading Oh, Christmas Tree! | #WordlessWednesday
Sometimes, it’s necessary to ignore the ice cold temperature and race outdoors at the first sign of light to catch a glimpse of God. “I Wake Close to Morning” Mary Oliver Why do people keep asking to see God’s identity papers when the darkness opening into morning is more than enough? Certainly any god might … Continue reading Into Morning | #WordlessWednesday
“God gave us memory so that we might have roses in December.” –from James M. Barrie, Courage The Rectorial Address, St. Andrew’s University, May 3, 1922
“Man is timid and apologetic; he is no longer upright; he dares not say ‘I think,’ ‘I am,’ but quotes some saint or sage. He is ashamed before the blade of grass or the blowing rose. These roses under my window make no reference to former roses or to better ones; they are for what … Continue reading “There Is Simply the Rose” | #WordlessWednesday
I left my final class of the day saddened by comments made by one of the students. In our discussion about how two films define love, forgiveness, redemption, hope, and freedom, she spewed venom about love in a way that shocked most of the other students. Sometimes it’s easier for a wounded individual to speak … Continue reading Heartwounds | #WordlessWednesday
Bears being sent through the mail should never be squashed up to make them fit. It gives them indigestion. -Pam Brown Look what traveled all the way from Germany via post to wish me a “Happy Birthday” and live with me forever? Svenja made it just for me and sent it for an October birthdays … Continue reading Happy Birthday to Me | #WordlessWednesday
If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, … Continue reading Optimism and Joy | #WordlessWednesday
