I have struggled mightily to locate an adequate metaphor for the family, picking up and tossing away paltry images. A puzzle is too one dimensional. Yes, like a puzzle, our small family of four is a whole that fits together, each piece required in forming the complete picture. But we depend on and play off…
Hoping for J: The difference between lightening and a lightning bug
This was not what we hoped for when we dreamed of becoming parents, not even close. “No!” he screamed. His words echoed off the walls as his round chocolate eyes cut away from mine. J flung his over-sized, three-and-a-half year-old body onto the floor, looking for all the world like a supplicant seized…
Christian Meditation: A Call for the Church to Come Home to its Roots
Mindfulness. Meditation. Stillness. Say these words in a room full of Christians and the reactions are not likely to be (a) warm, (b) fuzzy, or (c) welcoming. To many Christians—tolerant mainline Protestant Christians even— these words inch awfully close to the line. What line? You know the line. The line between what’s Christian and what…
Show Don’t Tell: On Loving by Showing How
You may have noticed a dry spell on Honest Conversations. O.k. More than a dry spell. I took a little writing break and stretched some other creative muscles—my crafting muscles. And in doing so, I’ve had great fun with my boys. I’m a huge believer in the power of creativity to bring joy and attention…
The Playground in February
An odd February afternoon my two boys loll about The church playground with dirty knees, shouting haphazard praises. I relax into a weathered bench. They are three-and-a-half, and one And-a-half; at this age halves matter. “Look, Mom!” Jay spirals Downward, sliding round. Will spins the wheel, captaining a great ship. We feel the air only…
The Way it Is for Me: Art and Ecstacy
Am I the only one? No is generally the answer. Uniqueness is a myth. Sameness is more the order of things. We humans are more alike than different. That is our blessing, the grace of common experience amid the pain of perceived separation. I sat in the dark amid audience looking at him sitting…
3-2-1 Boom!
When he dressed in the steel gray morning, Max thought he would be sitting at his desk working on his climate change models. A black Beatles t-shirt with his oldest, thinest jeans was perfect. The sound of tires splashing through puddles on Dupont Circle prompted him to kick the sandals from his feet in favor…
