Musings

By Lauren Catanese I have found that most answers to our troubles can be found in nature. Nature’s storms are like our struggles. They are the storms we experience. Struggling is a part of life. It’s when we struggle that we learn the most about life, ourselves, and those around...

By Sean Dietrich Do you remember when we met? I do. It was a Barnes and Noble bookstore. I was reading; you were with friends. You waltzed through the door with that determined walk you have. That I-can-take-care-of-myself walk. There are some things a man never forgets. You wore a baby-blue sweater. Your...

By Dave Holland Jonie danced into my life 14 years ago. Emblazoned in my mind’s eye is the picture of her bouncing into Poncho’s Mexican Restaurant for our first date. We met online through a dating service, but none of that prepared me for the whirlwind that blew into my...

By Dave Holland Miss Judith was an older schoolteacher in the 1930s, when it was believed that a woman’s place was at home with her family. In her youth she had a few suitors vie for her affections, but she never really felt loved, so she never married. Her fifth-grade grammar...

By Sean Dietrich CRACKER BARREL—I am eating breakfast with a cute date. My date is a baby. A fat baby. She is my niece, Lucy. I love fat babies. They do something to me. They make me feel like the world is warm and squishy. When I hold Lucy, I feel...

By Pastor Dave Holland Gently falling snow paved my walk to our village church on Christmas Eve so long ago. We lived a few blocks from the church I pastored in that small New England town and I expected the Light of the World to visit us as we celebrated...

By Sean Dietrich I feel a little silly writing you. Recently, I wrote a column about how when I was a boy I always wanted you to bring me a cowboy hat. A silver-belly colored Stetson. A few days later, one showed up on my porch from an anonymous person....

By Gueary Clendenning Christmas is just around the corner. After Thanksgiving, the pace quickens toward the big day! We’ll find ourselves in a big rush, always pursuing one more thing we need to get accomplished. We look for the nearest parking spot in the crowded mall, searching for the perfect...

By Kirk McCarley Thumbing through a magazine, one came across the article, “What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?” Some of the publication’s regular readers weighed in: • We don’t have to agree on anything to be kind to one another. • Don’t act like the destination is more important than the journey. If...

By Pastor Dave Holland My older brother Bob was always a big guy, and children often called him mean names like Fatty and Fatso. Later, due to his service in the Vietnam War, Bob had terrible nightmares. He tried to silence those dreams with toxic portions of alcohol and pot. Eventually,...