Arriving yesterday in Raleigh-Durham we deplaned into seventy-five degree sunny weather. Today will be the same. It is February the 23, and this is winter? I know that weather is not climate. Climate is what we call those more or less stable patterns governed by the jet stream, ocean currents, and probably much else…
Sunday, in the Judeo-Christian tradition is the “day of rest.” That still means generally that the seventh day of the week is purposed for rest and refreshment. I tend to seek a change in my normal daily routine, enjoy spending time out of doors, and in conversation with my wife. Both of us are…
I had an awful dream in the early morning hours. I was with others swimming, enjoying a calm pond; the water was warm, I felt family and friends were close by. In the distance a rickety old building stood on the shore of the pond. The kid in me has always been curious, so…
Today is Fat Tuesday, tomorrow is Lent, a season of abstinence. I was not raised Catholic, but I understand the logic of deprivation as preparation for newness, the emergence of new life. The truth is ancient, predating the Christian era. That’s the dynamic of life, of reality, of Nature, and the arc of human…
For who has despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plumbline in the hand of Zerubbabel; these seven are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth. —Zechariah 4:10 I’ve not lost my mind. I seldom quote verses of scripture. In…
I thought that I was through with the subject of “time.” But no, the choice is not , was not mine. “Time” is not through with me. There is more that I must say. It is impossible to assess the meaning of time, because we are like fish; we humans swim in the sea…
All that really belongs to us is time; even he who has nothing else has that. —Balthasar Gracian So began our essay, Flavors of Time by Dean Buonomano. We awaken to consciousness upon birth, a consciousness that increases with the mastery of motor skills and then of language. Observe a child over the year…
I finished the essay on the subject of time. That’s my second read. And I’ll likely read it again. I’ve been intrigued with “time” for many years. I cannot help but notice that a great deal of poetry happens to be verses that meditate upon the difference that times passage makes in human consciousness…
How do I say this? On this Sunday afternoon the Superbowl spectacle is to be staged in Minneapolis. I find it hard to care. I am stuck back on groundhog day, February the 2nd. It was a sunny day, Punxsutawny Phil returned to his burrow and thus six more weeks of winter are in…
The link between excellence in parenting and a happy childhood is obvious. There are not many excellent parents. From my observation of families, and of my own experience a majority of us greet our newly born child as if we were Adam and Eve. I am sobered to acknowledge that most of us enter…
