A week ago, I listened to a podcast host announce his colleague’s recent engagement. He put a ring on it, he said more than once. He punted beyond his coverage. His bride-to-be, the host implied, is out of his league. I found the conjunction of those two phrases a little unsettling. If she’s out of […]
We make an Olympic sport of pointing out other people’s mistakes. An Olympic athlete stands on the podium, gold medal around her neck, and fails to put her hand on her heart for the national anthem. We who could never do what she has done are offended. A presidential candidate’s wife poses topless twenty years […]
I can’t write about courage and ignore the Olympics. It’s a dream for so many: every four years, athletes from all over the globe come together to represent their countries before the world. To qualify, to attend, is an achievement of itself; to medal may be, for most, the pinnacle of their achievements on earth. […]
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. — The Constitution of the United States, First Amendment We […]
Last Wednesday night, a woman was killed in the Boundary Waters area between Minnesota and Ontario. It’s a huge wilderness area, where you can stay for a week and see no other people except the ones who ventured in with you. It’s a place where you can spend a few days completely off the grid, […]
In the fall of 2013, I was diagnosed with stage 2 colon cancer. As cancers go, I was pretty lucky: I needed no chemo or radiation. A skilled surgeon removed it with about a third of my colon, it has not returned, and now I get to make writer jokes about having a semicolon. It […]
… Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. –Matthew 25:40 It’s unusual for me to include a Bible quote in a post. I haven’t done it more than a short handful of times in the whole history of this blog. I’m no Bible […]
My last post struck a nerve for at least one reader. It’s probably unfair to say this person lashed out at me with their response, but they certainly directed a different sort of criticism at me than I’m used to receiving: my post was slamming whites, I was blaming society instead of working on my […]
I spent last week with my family in the mountains of Colorado. The cabin we stayed in is a precious place to us, with everything we need to be comfortable–with the notable absence of TV, internet, and cell reception. It’s a place where we have no choice but to unplug and get off the grid. […]
It’s one of our favorite romantic movie lines. You complete me, from 1996’s Jerry Maguire, instantly became a go-to line for many of us who saw the movie. It’s an excellent line. And a dangerous one. It’s excellent because it captures, succinctly and poetically, the depth of feeling between two people who love each other. […]