What Does It Mean to Be Blessed? Reflections on a Life

My mother-in-law, Kathryn Trautwein, with my mother, Ruth Gold. Picture taken at Easter 3 years ago. Today they are 96 and 91 years old. She was sleeping today.She sleeps a lot.When she's awake, she … Read more...

Quiet for the Weekend – August 4-5, 2012

"Timely advice is lovely;like golden apples in a silver basket."Proverbs 25:11 (NLT)"Rebellion against your handicaps gets you nowhere.Self-pity gets you nowhere.One must have the adventurous daringto … Read more...

Learning from the Humming Birds: A Photo Essay

It's been a wild ride the past few weeks - a major writing project to complete, followed by two weeks living in community with the charismatic Benedictines, wonderful friends who think deeply  about … Read more...

Being a Grandparent…

Today was a welcome dose of normalcy. After one solid week of terrorizing, wind-driven fires all around us here in Santa Barbara, trying to do some semblance of ministry while choosing which items to … Read more...

Silent Saturday: refreshment, renewal, reminder

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The Pulse of a Church: Faithfulness

 Yesterday was one of those days for me.One of those puzzle-clicking days,when the pieces come togetherand lock into place,creating a picture that is bothrecognizable and beautiful. It's taken about … Read more...

Quiet for the Weekend: July 6-8, 2012

"My beloved spoke and said to me,    'Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me.  See! The winter is past;  the rains are over and gone.  Flowers appear on the earth;  the season of singing … Read more...

A Guest Post: Window Coverings, Riding the Bus and Growing Up

My friend, David Rupert, has a great series goingthis summer - all about first jobs.He invited me to participate many weeks ago,and today is the day. Just a few simple reflections on going to work at … Read more...

A Sacramental Life

It's a long drive from here to there, about 110 miles.And I take a similar one every 2-3 weeks to see my mom.But this past weekend,I traveled those miles to make a different kind of connection,one … Read more...