Jul 23, 2023 | Pondering and Kindling
Edith Sitwell said of William Blake, the great painter and poet, “Of course he was cracked. That’s where the light shone through.” I like that explanation! All of us are cracked somewhere, or we are not what we are cracked up to be. None of us are...
Jul 20, 2023 | Pondering and Kindling
I have recently become a reader of Bill Keane’s cartoon, Family Circus. It is modeled after the cartoonist’s own family—his wife Thelma, and their children, Billy, Dolly, Jeffy, and P.J. In a recent scene Billy issues, a huge AH-CHOO sneeze into the face of Dolly....
Jul 16, 2023 | Pondering and Kindling
I decided recently that I should follow Bill Keane’s cartoon, Family Circus, more faithfully. So many profound lessons are couched in humor. Keane models the cartoon after his own family: Thelma, his wife, and their children, Billy, Dolly, Jeffy, and P.J. The...
Jul 12, 2023 | Pondering and Kindling
What ‘n the world are we coming to? That’s the way Momma expressed her exasperation with all the things coming at her that she did not understand. Almost every day when I read the news, or watch television, or simply observe culture I’m feeling that sentiment. More...
Jul 6, 2023 | Pondering and Kindling
We too quickly leave the reason for our celebrations behind. We must not do that on July 4. The tension and threatened disruption in Russia are an immediate reminder of who we say we are as a nation is as critical today as ever. When the founders of the United States...
Jul 2, 2023 | Pondering and Kindling
Providentially, a few days ago I came across reflective words I had written years ago, following a visit to Estonia, what was then East Germany, and the German Democratic Republic. I was there in a more or less official capacity, so in these three countries, I was...
