“Our potential is one thing. What we do with it is quite another.” ― Angela Duckworth, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance I recently listened to a book on CD called "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance" by Angela Duckworth. Ms. Duckworth's TED Talk on...
I don't resolute. As in, I have no New Year's resolutions. Not once, not ever, have I kept a resolution. In fact, I stopped being able to button my pants BEFORE Christmas, so that is when I reactivated my gym membership. I'm not one to...
The winter night brings a chill and so I plod across our backyard through leaves I meant to rake weeks ago, coming to a stop beside the blazing fire filled with boxes, papers, wrappings and scribbles whose remnants turn to molten ash before my eyes. I...
It’s Christmas Eve. All is calm, all is bright. I’m snuggled up with our dog, Sam, in a cozy room full of beloved family members napping. Through the almost floor-to-ceiling windows, a stand of trees reaches high into the sky, their branches gnarled and bare,...
In my Eastern Orthodox church, it is a traditional practice to fast during Advent. I can’t think of anything better to underscore for my children the idea of anticipation, and waiting for the birth of Christ. But by December 23, we are all getting kind of...
I’ve been teetering between the two lines of loving or hating social media. Social media can be a great thing. It’s such a wonderful way to connect and get a glimpse into peoples lives but it also can be too much shouting of opinions, nonsense...
First century Israel was a land ruled by the oppressive dictatorship of Herod the Great. The poor were oppressed while the rich prospered. Rev. John P. Meier, author of "A Marginal Jew," shares in his landmark study of the historical Jesus, "The whole concept of civil rights did not exist...
Advent - the Christmas season - is my favorite time of year. Mostly because I am a storyteller, and this is the greatest Story ever told. I am in a daze of wonder for the whole of December, star-stricken by the Divine humanity. Sometimes I write about Mary,...
“On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine—the best of meats and the finest of wines. On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers...
The popular Christmas story "The Gift of the Magi" tells the tale of Jim and Della, a couple who love each other deeply but don't have any extra money to buy each other Christmas gifts. Secretly, each decides to sell their most prized possession in...