When I was in the fourth grade, one of my best friends was a boy named Joe Bryant, whose family rented a farmhouse southwest of Danville on Mackey Road. He […]
Tag: ago
Things We Got Just Right (Innovation over Tradition)
My phone rang not long ago. It was a Quaker calling from out-of-state, whom I had met several years ago at a conference. He called because their Quaker meeting was […]
Things We Got Just Right (Equality Over Cultural Norms)
Several years ago, a man I know was told he was dying, which of course we all are, but his death was sooner than he had anticipated. Though well-off, he’d […]
Things We Got Just Right (Sacramental Living)
When our children were born, Joan bought a camera and started taking pictures. Pictures of everything—vacations, hikes, family gatherings, birthday parties, first haircuts, first days of school, holidays, thousands of […]
What in the World Were We Thinking? (Silence is Good for Everyone)
A friend phoned me recently, asking if he could borrow our Ford Flex. He didn’t say why he needed it, and I didn’t want to appear nosy, because if there’s […]
What In the World Were We Thinking? (A Distrust of Leaders)
Some time ago, I wrote an essay about the abuse scandals in the Catholic Church. It got published and circulated around, and made its way back to Danville, to the […]
Cooperation, not Competition, as an Aspect of Community
I was being a curmudgeon the other day, talking with someone about how young people today don’t know anything about history, when it occurred to me that until I was […]
Quaker Qualities (Not Simplicity, but Generosity)
When I was 32 years old, I received a phone call from the Friends World Committee for Consultation, asking if I would serve on their Executive Committee. This was a […]
How to Die Before You’re Dead (7)
VIEW VIDEO I’ve been thinking this week about family traditions, which we used to have in my family until my granddaughter was born and tradition went out the window. When […]
How to Die Before You’re Dead (4)
VIEW VIDEO When I was 6 years-old, my great-uncle Fritz died and I wanted to go to his funeral, not because I was especially fond of him, I barely knew […]