Love
-
We’ll Have to Muddle Through Somehow
There’s nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child. Erma Bombeck Thursday will be my first Christmas without Mom. I have been facing this realization since her death earlier in the year, but the awareness has become more intense with each passing day. I can’t stop thinking about Continue reading
-
On Beloved Community
Love is creative and redemptive. Love builds up and unites; hate tears down and destroys. The aftermath of the ‘fight with fire’ method is bitterness and chaos, the aftermath of the love method is reconciliation and creation of the beloved community. Yes , love — which means understanding, creative, redemptive goodwill, even for one’s enemies-is Continue reading
-
Ten Thousand and One Reasons
When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it–always. Mahatma Gandhi Preamble There is no denying it. We live in difficult times. Continue reading
-
First Frost
All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost; the old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost. J. R. R. Tolkien We had our first frost of the season on Saturday. Having lived in Minnesota since the 1980s, I know that no Continue reading
-
On Being Human
We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin I began an on-again, off-again relationship with Unitarianism sometime in the late 1990s. Admittedly, I was introduced to the religion by my wife who grew up Unitarian. I was raised a Catholic, but somewhere Continue reading
-
The Sessions
Those who have never known the deep intimacy and the intense companionship of mutual love have missed the best thing that life has to give. Bertrand Russell This article deals with things of a sexual nature and I use words that may be upsetting to some of my readers. Feel free to stop now if Continue reading
-
One Step, Two Step, Change Step
People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar. Thich Nhat Hanh Preamble: Although much of this article is based on Twelve-Step concepts, everything is applicable to non-recovery. Change is a universal human need no matter where you are coming from Continue reading
-
The Biblical Case for LGBTQ+ Rights
The longer you’re in one place, the harder it is to leave. Gene Clark I should not be surprised at the hate and vitriol that continues to come from the Republican party, but this newish bit of garbage blew me away. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky recently said that former CDC director Demetre Daskalakis “had Continue reading
-
Annunciation
We draw our strength from the very despair in which we have been forced to live. We shall endure. Cesar Chavez Last Friday, Linda and I rode our bikes to the Church of the Annunciation to pay our respects to those who were killed and injured during the recent mass shooting. We were away from Continue reading
-
Tuesday’s Child is Full of Grace
I do not at all understand the mystery of grace – only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us. Anne Lamott Anyone who has been following this blog knows that I am deeply concerned about the state of the world and the country I call home. Continue reading
-
All the World is Birthday Cake
You know you’re getting old when the candles cost more than the cake. Bob Hope Last week I had another one of those birthday things. It wasn’t one that ends in zero, so it didn’t have the gravitas of a big transition. Still, I am of the belief that even these lesser-milestone birthdays are special Continue reading
-
The North Shore Simple Life
‘Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free‘Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,And when we find ourselves in the place just right,‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight Joseph Brackett I am a Cancer and us Cancers find great comfort in the familiar. I Continue reading
-
Mom
It may be possible to gild pure gold, but who can make his mother more beautiful? Mahatma Gandhi My mother, Bernadine Mary Hazinski Prokop, passed away this past Friday at 4:40 a.m. Arizona Time. She was 98 years old. There is much that I would like to say about Mom, but it’s too early in Continue reading
-
Variations on a Theme
Hapy, the ancient god of the Nile, depicted at Dendera with Cleopatra, is typically shown with breasts – symbolism that demonstrated how the life-giving gifts of Egypt’s river artery come only when the power of both female and male was combined. Bettany Hughes Variation One I can still recall a reoccurring dream I had around Continue reading
-
Somebody Somewhere
If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading. Lao Tzu I have always been a stumbler. I create lofty plans regarding where I want to be and what I need to do to get there only to see my journey become a series of accidents, pitfalls, switchbacks, and wrong Continue reading
-
A Day of Visibility
All of us are put in boxes by our family, by our religion, by our society, our moment in history, even our own bodies. Some people have the courage to break free. Geena Rocero I have said and done far too many unkind and thoughtless things in my life. Some are long forgotten, but there Continue reading
-
Pollyanna, Radical Feminist
Find joy in everything you choose to do. Every job, relationship, home… it’s your responsibility to love it, or change it. Chuck Palahniuk I have secret pleasure. I adore 1950s and 1960s live-action Disney movies. I suspect that much of that has to do with my childhood. I have very powerful memories of piling into Continue reading
-
Entirely Ready
I have to be composed; I have to be poised. I have to remember what my first piano teacher told me: ‘You do not touch that piano until you are ready and until they are ready to listen to you. Nina Simone It has been a few months since I wrote A Fearless and Moral Continue reading
-
Teenage Crash and Burn
When I was a teenager, I was an ultra late bloomer, and my mom would say it was a blessing because it means you never have to wonder if guys are only interested in you because you’ve got boobs. Anna Kendrick I recently came upon the following: A survey conducted by the Survey Center on Continue reading
-
Time Beyond, Time Without
Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides. Lao Tzu It has been said that there are five stages of grief: Denial, bargaining, depression, anger, and acceptance. Today is the second anniversary of my brother Bob’s death and since waking this morning I’ve felt every one of them to one Continue reading
Can You Hear Me Now 