We’ve all heard the advice: Don’t buck the crowd. Go along to get along. Don’t rock the boat. When I’m with a group of people, often the last thing I want to do is buck the crowd. Children are especially vulnerable to this feeling. As a child, I was the...
Cows moo. Dogs bark. Frogs croak…and so do I. I wish it weren’t true, but wishing doesn’t make it so. Although comparing my singing to frogs’ croaking might even be insulting to the frogs.That’s why I often have mixed emotions whenever I read Bible verses encouraging...
Thirty years ago, I stopped a pickpocket. It happened on Nassau Street in lower Manhattan as I watched a man match his stride with the woman in front of him. When he was close enough, he reached into her coat pocket from behind and lifted out her wallet. She was...
Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is attracting more and more life these days. Historically a Mexican tradition, Day of the Dead celebrations are spreading across the United States. This year, Dia de los Muertos will occur on November 1 and 2. But it’s more than...
Names can ignite treasured memories or they can bring to mind people and experiences we’d rather forget. When I hear the name Barbie, I think of the iconic doll from my childhood. Elizabeth reminds me of the Queen of England. Sandy reminds me of…tragedy. Two years ago...
I’m a cracked pot. Not a crackpot, although some might disagree. A cracked pot. Normally, cracked pots are dumped. Discarded as useless. Trashed as garbage. That was me – cracked and purposeless. Of course, being me, I tried to fix myself. I patched up my cracks as...
My heart weeps for her, even though we’ve never met. Twenty-nine, a newlywed, and terminally ill with brain cancer. Who wouldn’t be moved by Brittany Maynard’s story? Last April, Maynard was given no more than six months to live due to stage four glioblastoma, a...
Discussion is usually healthy. We learn from each other as we discuss and process new ideas or differing opinions. But what happens when we disagree about whether to have the discussion at all? Nowhere have I seen Christian doctrine battled out more vehemently than on...
It used to be in the realm of science fiction. Not anymore. Designer babies are one step closer to reality. A U.S. company, 23andMe, has received a patent for a process that could be used to choose babies selected on the basis of genes that will increase the...
NASA surprised itself. Thirty-six years ago, Voyager I was launched for a four-year mission to Saturn. Exceeding expectations, it recently exited our solar system—the first manmade object to do so. Living up to its nickname, "The Little Spacecraft That Could" has...
Are You Rearranging the Darkness? “Spring ahead, fall back.” Repeating this phrase is the only way I can...
Costume or Uniform? October brings a season of costumes. Choices that are inappropriate for the remaining...
How Big is Your God? My God isn’t big enough. Of course, I never...