Lord, teach me. . . .

Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by the traffic from both directions. –Margaret Thatcher A long time ago, before Play Station and X-Box, there was . . .  Atari. One of the few games for Atari that I remember and enjoyed was Frogger . The premise behind Frogger was that the player is a frog trying to cross the road without getting smashed flat by high-speed traffic. I was never very good at it, but enjoyed trying to hop my way across the Interstate. As children, our parents remind us not to play in the street. It’s just not a good idea, what with cars and all! But sometimes in life, things happen that force us, really, to leave the safety of the sidewalks and get involved. Now might be just one such time. In many corners of the world, including our corner, civil rights are being ignored. Some folks are deciding they deserve more , at the expense of others not like them. Some folks are even claiming God is ordaining them ...

In this scene set in sadness like the night is here to stay, There is evil cast around us but it’s Love that wrote the play, And through this darkness, Love will show the way. –David Wilcox The past week (or more) has been very difficult; August 12 marked a very ugly day in Charlottesville, Virginia. Fresh young faces, theoretically the future of our country, were twisted in rage as they marched for all the world to see, trying to convince that same world that they are somehow better than everyone else because their skin is white. But then Love kicked in. Here in Cleveland, a group calling themselves Indivisible CLE, diverse in so many ways, shared prayers, hugs and pleas to love one another, period. In Denver, Colorado, over a thousand people gathered near a statue of Martin Luther King to sing, to pray, to remind those who had forgotten that This land was made for you and me. In cities across southern Florida, peaceful candlelight vigils were held. I...

As you say goodbye to lingering disappointments and unattended grief, you will discover that every person, situation and painful incident comes bearing gifts.  –Debbie Ford There’s a quote from someone, along the lines of, “The minute you say hello, you begin to prepare to say goodbye.” It may sound trite, but it’s true. No one goes through life without saying goodbye many, many times; from the day we first head off to school, cheerfully (or tearfully) waving goodbye, our lives are filled with departures. Some goodbyes feel more like good riddance; most feel more like a piece of our heart is being cut out. Even as we profess a belief in so much more beyond this life, saying goodbye to someone hurts, especially when they’ve been part of our lives for a long time. What to do? How to lessen the pain of saying goodbye? I wish I had some really great answers here, but I don’t. A lifetime of experience hasn’t made it any easier. Here’s what I’ve learned: Most important,...

I thank you God for most this amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees,  and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural,  which is infinite, which is yes.  –e. e. cummings This journey called life can really be a bear at times. One of the most important things we can teach our children, at least in this grandma’s mind, is how to make the journey just a little less difficult. And one of the easiest ways to do that is to practice appreciation. Remember when you were little, and someone would give you a gift, or tell you what a pretty outfit you were wearing? And in the background, an adult voice would gently remind you: What do you say, dear? And eventually, possibly under duress, we say please, or thank you, or no, thank you. Because that is what polite, kind people do, right? (There’s a lovely little book by this name, by Sesyle Joslin and Maurice Sendak, the funniest book of manners out there. Giggle and learn.) Bu...