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blue or red in a yellow land
The first time that I had the privilege of leading a congregation through a presidential election, my toes were tapping to the sound of Fleetwood Mac singing, “Don’t stop, thinking about tomorrow.” The...
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Post-Sandy Musing: Take your Truffula Seeds and Vote
Marrying a science teacher has amazing perks and only a couple of drawbacks. Touring a few of our National Parks on our honeymoon, I had the privilege of “seeing” the parks through the eyes of science...
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Friend #549 – Lost to the Celebration
Yesterday I lost a friend. As the day dawned we were friends, by nightfall we were not. Once again the comma holds the story. This friend was a childhood neighbor. He lived across the field and we were...
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giving thanks for limbo-land (really)
Limbo is the place between here and there, the place that is the already and the not yet. It is an uncomfortable place and often associated with all kinds of negativity, but as I write from this place...
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thanksgiving fog
As we move somewhat blithely into the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in middle America, Wal-Mart workers are planning a (first-ever?) strike, bombs are reigning with new passion in Gaza, and the weather...
View ArticleO Come, O Come, Emmanuel
Once upon a time, a colleague pointed out an implicit anti-semitism in our traditional carol, “O come, O come, Emmanuel”. She suggested that singing about Israel needing to be ransomed with Christ as...
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ssm’s (silly stupid mistakes) which are neither
A project that has consumed my spare moments this fall is preparing for a big math test. It turns out that in this era of high stakes testing for kids, we do the same for teachers so in order to renew...
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charity challenges
Although it is yesterday’s news, I was really struck by the important and untended lessons in the story of the NYC police officer buying shoes for the homeless vet that wasn’t homeless. Apparently a...
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a christmas prayer… for being, awareness and love
Timidly I wade into the Christmas machine and wonder if this might be the year that I find balance. For many years I did my best to create the Martha Stewart Christmas with spiritual depth on a...
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a letter from one white mother to another…
I am a mother. To be more specific, I am a white woman mother of a son. And I am writing to other white mothers with an earnest appeal to begin a long overdue conversation. To be fair, this is not an...
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A Sewing Story
“In my end is my beginning.” - T.S. Eliot On Friday I received the news: my sewing machine was irreparable. It was a simple machine and old, but it represents so much of who I am that as I listened...
View Articlemilkweed
there is nothing so apparently lifeless as a milkweed pod in the autumn nothing so apparently lifeless as a stone shrouded tomb more will be revealed there is nothing as pernicious as a milkweed seed...
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In the River
A story is told of an old man who falls into a raging river just above the rapids. His friends frantically reach for him as the current carries him toward danger. Helpless they watch as his lifeless...
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Swan Song – A Closing Sermon
1. Swan Song A swansong is the exquisite burst of music at the close of a silent life, at least according to ancient legends about the swan. So it is with amusement that after a lifetime of making...
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rearview mirrors
The bane and blessing of aging is the growing collection of rearview mirrors. The mirrors are precious because they hold the sweet memories of our baby’s touch and the first kiss of our beloved. The...
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in the spring of the year… in remembrance of George
Once upon a time when I was a young math teacher in a small college town, I lived in the upstairs apartment of an old house and an interesting grad student lived downstairs. Don had a bumpersticker on...
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beyond “our savior”
Yesterday I drove past a neighborhood church sporting the sign, “Jesus paid the price… you can keep the change.” Disconcerting was the dissonance between the progressive denomination (United Church of...
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revolution seed or brass ring?
If this month’s PBS lineup is any indication, American’s are intrigued by the extremes of wealth and poverty, at least the historical ones. Downton Abbey fans are in mourning at the end of Season 3, an...
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Watching Schindler’s List: Removing Blinders for Lent
Last night I joined the millions of Americans who’ve experienced Spielberg’s magnum opus, Schindler’s List. It was the twentieth anniversary of this renowned movie and I confess that it took twenty...
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Stones: Bloomberg, Young Parents, and the limits of the Ally
Mayor Bloomberg is having some powerful blow back this week, though a guy with his track record is probably used to it. The media courting NYC mayor was outed in a Salon article about the vested...
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