This 48-star American flag will not be ignored. It is the memorial flag of U.S. Army veteran Jay Henry, my wife’s uncle and, by marriage, my uncle. My wife knows almost nothing about him. Call him an unknown soldier. He was his mother’s first illegitimate child, fathered by some married man who never acknowledged him. […]
Migrating Canada Geese
The high-flying formations of Canada geese still delight my 79-year-old eyes. Often heard before seen, honking their way across the sky, they seem wild and free. Me? I am rooted, rooted for now, still living in the same house my wife and I purchased 25 years ago. I do not take stability for granted. Even […]
The World Wants Us Happy
Last week, leading a discussion about taming the ten thousand things, I said, “The world wants us to be happy.” It was a bold, reckless statement coming from someone usually so careful in his metaphysical claims, yet it captures my fundamental optimism, fickle as it may be in practice. Reality is not a clenched fist […]
Reflections on my Christian Faith
Every few weeks, I reflect on the challenges of being a Christian. I began these essays in January 2022 when my church — the Episcopal Church of Saints Andrew and Matthew in downtown Wilmington, Delaware — started looking for a new rector. The previous rector had written short musings every week. With his pen silent, […]
Overwhelmed By Clutter
My friends say, “I don’t know where to begin. There are piles and stacks everywhere. I am struggling. It’s embarrassing. I am overwhelmed.” Because they are talking about the clutter in their lives, it is difficult to give their complaints much sympathy. After all, nobody dies of clutter or having mucho too much of too […]
Reading Room Rearranged
In my world, if you do not do it yourself, it does not get done. For many months, I let my books pile up in what we call our reading room. I ignored the many things scattered about and piled on the floor. The room was a dumping ground, but I refused to intervene. In […]
Yellow Curbs, Scarlet Columns
Bright colors inside and out — Checkers Fast-Food Drive-Ins want to be noticed. Perhaps this pandering for my attention is why it was twenty-five years before I walked into the Checkers lobby at the corner of Philly Pike and Lea Boulevard here in Wilmington, Delaware. If ad execs and copy writers want me to do […]
Small Victories – Storm Door Latch Fixed
The front storm door was not latching. It latched a few months ago; why not now? Idea No. 1 — there is something between the door and the jamb. So I cleaned out a small mud dauber’s nest and other debris from where the door seated. That did not help. Idea No. 2 — something […]
My Troubling Insight in brief
I hate pleasing him, yet I keep talking about him. I am as guilty as anyone, his co-conspirator. See here! Even now I am talking about him! No name is needed. He gets his supporters to cheer and his detractors to howl. He keeps us ringside, clapping and booing, a ringmaster who compels our attention […]
What Makes This Task Mine Mine Mine?
God help me, but I wonder about things, like what makes this or that task mine mine mine? Many a task is everyone’s responsibility us us us but not the responsibility of anyone in particular. Something needs to be done but who should do it? Me me me? You you you? For example, something needs […]