Pete Hamill: A Drinking Life
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There are two kinds of people in the world; those who were born and raised in New York City and those who wish they were. Pete Hamill’s A Drinking Life is a great book for both kinds of people.
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Letter to the Church
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A year ago, during the first months of the pandemic, I filmed a video for my parish. A love letter really. To encourage believers and to remind myself of what was true and real.
I shared that even in the midst of isolation I hadn’t lost my joy.
Read MoreLet Us Not Grow Weary of Doing Good
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I have grown weary of doing good.
Of reaching out. Of pursuing. Of waiting. Of praying. Of standing firm.
Even if I do all these things I am still alone, tired and discouraged.
Read MorePandemic Parenting Requires Families to Adapt to New Narratives
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Is it just me or does every mother feel as if we are just winging it? Motherhood is the ultimate "on the job training." We read all the books, ask advice from more "seasoned" mothers than us, but nothing could have prepared us for mothering this year. There isn't an issue of "What to Expect When Parenting Through a Pandemic."
Read MoreDiane Ackerman's Dawn Light
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For 40 essays, Diane Ackerman speaks to, about and on the subject of the sunrise. It is astounding how she can describe the beginning of the day in so many ways.
Read MoreOur Neighbor
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Even in pain and sickness and exhaustion, my neighbor radiates God’s love to others. She feels Christ close to her, and in turn, we feel him close too. She is unafraid, for she truly believes what she has always said she believed.
Read MoreMy MFA Graduate Reading
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Well, I did it! I graduated! I now have an MFA in Creative Non-Fiction.
The highlight of my last residency was reading some of my work for my graduate reading.
Prayer for Spring
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Spring is here!
I know it happens every year but every year I am flabbergasted by the gloriousness of it all. I want you to know that it is not wasted on me. I see it all and I want to say “Thank you!”
Read MoreWhat St. Paul Can Teach Us About Christian Joy
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St Paul was on house arrest for 2 yrs. Sound familiar? And yet, he chose joy. I look to him for inspiration during this seemingly, never-ending lockdown.
Read MoreRembrandt’s Crucified Christ
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Rembrandt’s “Christ Crucified Between the Two Thieves” brings Christ down among the spectators. Soldiers, horses, mockers and followers are pressed upon each other. Horses seem to spill upon the crowd.
Grievers hold their bodies in wretched poses. The two thieves flank Christ on either side. They are within speaking distance of him, not shouting distance, as I imagined.
Read MoreThe Weight of Attending Mass For Those Who Cannot
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I wrote this as a love letter to the Church I am so mystically connected to.
Read MoreAnger is Not a Fruit of the Spirit
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God shows us that anger is necessary to move away from that which is unholy and turn our eyes toward him. When our eyes are on God, we find grace and mercy and love and kindness there. Not more anger.
Read MoreBook Review: Awakened By Death
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Death has been at the forefront of our thoughts for the past year, no matter how we try to push it away. My review for Christiana N. Peterson’s Awakened By Death for U.S. Catholic.
Read MoreLet's Not Be Stingy with Our Kindness
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I’ve missed kindness this past year. We were stingy with our kindness, saving it mostly for those who clearly shared our values. And when I say “we,” I mean “me.”
Read MoreWhat Would You Ask God?
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My 11-year-old son asks the best questions. …The other night at dinner he asked, “If you could ask God anything, what would you ask?” Our normally verbal family was silenced for a few moments
Read MoreAsh Wednesday: Guided by St. Clare of Assisi
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“Just when I think St. Clare is too lofty for me, when I think she couldn't understand what the past year has been like for me and others, I read of the time she was infirm and bedridden. She could not join her sisters for Christmas midnight Mass, so she was miraculously treated to history's first livestreamed Mass on the wall of her room. Yes, she is the patron saint of television.”
Read MoreChrist’s Presentation in the Temple: A Light for All of Us
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Four years ago, we were in Mexico City for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. I finally got around to writing about it for Busted Halo . Read about it here.
Andrew Wyeth's Snow Hill and the Subjects of Art
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"The snow is untouched. No footprints lead in or out. Have they danced through a snowstorm? Have they been there forever?"
Read MoreJamaica Kincaid's A Small Place
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Jamaica Kincaid’s A Small Place is a small book of big truths. Kincaid tells the story of the small island of Antigua in the British West Indies; the colonialism that brought them to the place they are in and the difficulties pulling themselves out now that freedom has been attained.
Read MoreHope for 2021 and the Love of God
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Paul's letter to the Romans gives us a message of hope and love in 2021.
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I always come to this prayer time with auspicious expectations. I know God is going to show up. I just don’t know how. I am always surprised how he does.