Have you noticed the sense of peace and quiet that settles over the world as winter arrives? No more crickets chirping; only a few bird calls, here and there. There are no leaves left on the trees to rustle in the breeze. Late at night, when I take Gloria outside for the last time before […]
Read more "Peace and Quiet"Today is the first Sunday of advent, the beginning of the four-week period leading up to Christmas when we anticipate and prepare for light and love to be born into our world once again. Noticed or unnoticed, we—as living beings–live our lives in touch with light. We feel it, and grumble, when the days grow […]
Read more "Preparing the Way"Do you think of Jesus as a thankful person? It’s common for us to think of him as a wise and learned teacher, an able leader, a person who was clear about the truth and the truth of his relationship with God. We know from the Gospel stories that Jesus cared about those who struggled, […]
Read more "The Gratitude of Christ"Did you have a favorite book when you were little? Maybe you liked Gulliver’s Travels, Oliver Twist, or the Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys series. You might have read the Doctor Dolittle series, like I did, or enjoyed Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books, long before the television show made the stories part of our […]
Read more "The Secret Garden"A number of years ago I was walking with friends through Circle Center Mall downtown. We’d just listened to our kids play a Christmas jazz concert in the Artsgarden—that beautiful glassed dome that spans Washington and Illinois streets in downtown Indianapolis. As we walked back through the mall toward the parking garage, we passed the […]
Read more "What the Silence Is for"Doesn’t it feel good to get a really good night’s sleep? You know, the kind of sleep where we wake up feeling warm, rested, and ready for a new day? Researchers have spent decades studying sleep and they can tell us all kinds of things about it—from the speed of our brain waves during different […]
Read more "Each New Day"How many simple, wonderful things have you already enjoyed in your day today? Maybe you woke up warm, snuggled under layers of soft blankets. Perhaps you enjoyed a cup or two of freshly brewed coffee, probably thankful for the aroma long before you took that first sip. You may have shared a few sweet quiet […]
Read more "Simple Things"