Something Stronger Within
How do we go about finding meaning in existence? Are we ever explicitly taught to do so? Where would one go for such teaching? Perhaps long ago, the answer would have been some form of institutional school, but that no…
Turn Around; It’s not All in Front of You
Andrew Forge’s essays on mostly 20th-century art has me thinking about paintings that tend to elicit the response “I could do that” and wondering why they are important. I think it comes down to a relatively simple distinction: perhaps we…
White, Grey, Black
“I asked him what prayers. He said they prayed to Yezu Klisto and someone called Simon. Is that the same as Simon Peter?” “No, not quite the same. The fathers could tell you about Simon. He died in gaol nearly…
Know It All
The Volume Library. God love you, Dad. When you signed on the dotted line for that scam, you were trying to do the right thing. Your blood sugar may have been on the way down and you just wanted your…
Let It Be an End in Itself
Do you ever feel like you belong nowhere? I’m going through such an experience now, feeling sort of homeless. I keep telling myself to unpack my bags and settle, that I can stay here, that I can be happy here,…
Do Any of Us Really Know What We are Doing?
Paleo Principles by Sarah Ballantyne is an enormous tome, and I generally set a box of poker chips atop the pages of one side to hold it open so I can read while I eat breakfast. Bridget purchased the book…
A Madeleine Day
Will I ever retire Walking on Water: just leave it alone or give it away? I doubt it. It continues to speak to me, even though I would never think to include L’Engle in a list of my favorite writers.…
The Humiliated Christ in Russia
Caryll Houselander was an interesting cat: quirky and Catholic, a bit of a mystic, a bit of a crazy cat lady without the cats. She was born in England in 1901 and died of breast cancer at the age of…
When You’re a Stranger
Where did I come from and who am I? Do typical people expend much time on these questions, or is it just me and a handful of other narcissists? I actually am genuinely interested in those big questions, perhaps, most…
Let the Night Be Too Dark
At most he thinks or twitters softly, “Safe!Now let the night be dark for all of me.Let the night be too dark for me to seeInto the future. Let what will be, be.” —Robert Frost Living in day-tight compartments is…
How Did We Get Here?
The psychological stress caused by cognitive dissonance is something that has caught my attention. How could it not? You don’t have to go far to find people getting upset over things that likely would never have bothered them in the…
Which Character are You?
Once in a while, I remind myself that I used to get frustrated with people who wouldn’t hand out answers like candy. I liked the sound of this: “Literature leaves you with questions; lesser works give you all the answers,”…
