• Potpourri

    A life profound

    True story. I was shopping today at the restaurant supply store. A checker (who is older than me, by the way) I’ve seen many times over the years asked me if I always wear my hair this way. (you know… undyed, twisted up in a bun) I smiled and said, “Yes, I do.” He said, “It looks so nice. You remind me of my grandmother.” I smiled. I think I looked down. (wincing and smiling) He said, “No, no, no. That’s the highest compliment I could give you. Really.” I tucked my debit card into my wallet… picked up my…

  • Essays

    A few decades

    More or less. That’s what we have on this earth: a few decades, more or less. And I’m beginning to see that the more or less depends not so much on length of time or number of decades as the use of the days and time in each decade. My friend sent me a song… “A Life Profound” by Mica Lee Williams. I listened. I listened again.  Because we’re not really familiar with her music,  I’m not sure I, or my friend, would likely recommend all of her music or style or spiritual position… I just don’t know. But there’s something…

  • More Slices of Life - Motherhood

    It’s interesting to be living long enough to see history

    repeat itself. I heard that sort of thing from my mother growing up. I read about history repeating itself in school, in letters and in magazines in dentist’s offices over the years. I read about it in Ecclesiastes. The more I read the more I see it. The longer I live I see it: History repeating itself. So I was driving along and a song popped in my head and I must’ve been humming… one of the children said, O, that’s a new ____ song. I thought… no, no… that’s an old song.  What?  You *know* that song?  Yes… it…

  • Family

    family reunions

    I never really quite understood ‘family reunions’ and actually never really knew people had them (whatever they were) when I was growing up. I think that’s another of the many casualties of divorce. Broken families don’t have family reunions. I’m not so sure I have grasped the deep seated value of family reunions until this year. O, sure I valued getting together with the family and I’m exceedingly grateful to and for my mother-in-law’s foresight to initiate our annual family reunions — but I’m not sure I have grasped the significance or importance until now. Trouble is… family reunions are…

  • Family

    I’ll be looking at the moon…

    I have sort of thing going with my children… when they’re away, I tell them that when they go outside and see the moon… I’ll be looking at the moon and I’ll be seeing the same thing they’re seeing. There’s something strangely comforting in all that… something connecting. I guess, in a way, that if I’m able to see the moon at the same time they’re seeing it… well… then they must not be all that far away. Now, when Kathryn was in Uganda, however, my comfort was simply in knowing that the same God who sees me, loves me,…

  • Potpourri - The Church Today

    Re-imaging God

    You may be saying… wha…? I know. Incredible. I almost hesitate to write about this bcz of the blasphemous nature of the topic, but I share this, in part, to urge awareness… to urge believers to pray and to urge believers to “wake up” and see the turns of events in the world around us. The more time goes by we’re seeing incredible leaps and departures from the Truth. As if the ‘seeker felt-needs-meet-my-wants’ trend wasn’t extreme enough, and as if the contemplative, mysticism wasn’t enough of a departure, now we have yet another perversion of Truth: the heretical, “re-imaging”…

  • In the Kitchen - Potpourri

    Curried Chicken Wraps

    (courtesy of Ina Garten and The Food Network) CURRIED CHICKEN WRAPS 3 split (1 1/2 whole) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on Olive oil Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 1/2 cups good mayonnaise 1/3 cup dry white wine 1/4 cup chutney (recommended: Major Gray’s) 3 tablespoons curry powder 1 cup medium-diced celery (2 large stalks) 1/4 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts (2 scallions) 1/4 cup raisins 1 cup whole roasted, salted cashews, chopped 6 tortillas Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub the skin with olive oil. Sprinkle…

  • Potpourri

    “…that women would adorn themselves…”

    …in modest apparel.” I’ve been mulling this over (and over) and over. This morning I was browsing Facebook then the Drudge Report and the Seattle Times. And you know… there’s a common thread (pun unintentional — but I think there’s something to it) and a common appearance. It’s not just the blurring the lines between decency and indecency or masculinity and femininity (certainly not in the SeattleTimes). But it’s more than that — I’m not sure it’s driven by culture today or culture of thirty years ago or what. I’m not even touching on the mutilation by piercings and tattoos,…

  • NewsDuJour - Potpourri

    there ought to be a law… on indecent exposure

    And now there is. And I’d hazard to guess that there are “indecent exposure” laws on the books in many states already… maybe many laws and on the books for many, many years. So, now in Mansfield, Louisiana there’s a brand new law against indecent exposure… a law against sagging. Now, you know, I’m thinking that there’s going to be a bunch of hooey about the invasion of privacy or personal expression… you know freedom of dress as a form of speech. Apparently, there’ll be a pretty stiff fine for, well… “Anyone caught wearing sagging pants who exposes his or…