Recovery. Sobriety. Living Wise.
When the despair of the world grows in me, and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children’s life may be, I go lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief. I come … Continue reading On Being Alive
For the longest time my grandson Sam liked to watch YouTube videos on garbage collection. That’s right, videos of various kinds of garbage trucks collecting various kinds of garbage. It’s actually quite surprising how many different kinds of vehicles have been invented to pick up garbage. Anyway, I spent a fair amount of grandpa time contemplating garbage collection and have a couple of my own … Continue reading Be Your Own Garbage Collector
Let me pose this question: Where do you look for your heroes? Are they the brilliant scientists searching out a vaccine for COVID-19? Are they the brave men and women on the front lines fighting fires? Are they the leaders of the protest movements that now encircle the globe? Our heroes tell us a lot about who we are and what we value. Let me … Continue reading What Is A Hero?
Some time ago Marsha and I watched Henry Fonda in the movie “Young Mr. Lincoln.” Afterward, I wondered whether we would ever see anyone again with the character of Old Abe. Then I wondered, would I even recognize such a person if he or she crossed my path? Would I have the eyes to see a young Lincoln? What struck me about Lincoln’s story was … Continue reading Finding My Humanity
“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” ― James Baldwin I, like many of you, have had my world stopped, once again, on the issue of racism. After the horrific murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis I called Jai, my surrogate nephew, to check in on him. Jai, who is both a St. Paul police … Continue reading Changing Our Hearts … And Laws