The photo awes me. It is stunningly beautiful, the shadows, the softness of the angles, the vastness of the sand dunes. I am pulled in by the lone figure walking, his footsteps behind him with a long journey ahead of him. I feel a touch of sadness because he is alone, and overwhelmed because there […]
The Life of a Stone… and I
I Lying here Cold, dark, still, Powerless. Only acted upon. Still but not at rest Motion flowing over and around Forces greater than I At work? One moment gently brushing past my face Like quiet breeze Refreshment and life, then, Disorientation, tumbling, Drifting to unknown. Impacting without grace or respite. Edges breaking, Cracks splitting, Will […]
The Gift of Presence
“Do you believe that God is with you, right now while the lightning crashes overhead and the creek rises below?” The two college students I addressed had been leading all through the long hard day, and they glanced around them, their eyes wildly looking for some sense of safety and security. We had evacuated an […]
Disorientation to Reorientation
A month ago I wrote a blog post on the power of lament. I described my personal process of lament as I struggled to come to terms with the radical changes our world is going through. I discovered how important it was for me to allow myself to feel and be with, the roller coaster […]
Called to Adversity
The cold rain pelted us; the rushing river was already full and continued to rise as we huddled on the bank trying to stay warm. All 13 of us moved together like penguins, stamping our feet and trying to generate as much warmth as we could for one another. We made constant adjustments to the […]
Treasures of Darkness
These are extraordinary times. You are probably reading this from the quarantine of your own home amidst the worldwide Covid 19 Pandemic. It’s possible you are worried, scared, bored, angry at authorities, or “Covidiots”, or frustrated with your spouse or kids. The opportunities for darkness to creep in around us are rampant. But let’s let […]
Leaving Normal
I howled at the moon last night. Seriously. My wife, my daughter and I stood on our patio, cupped our hands to our mouths, and howled like wild wolves at the moon. Soon, we heard the repeating reply from our neighbors also getting in touch with their inner wolves. It was a silly idea someone […]