Sep 14J is a Unit of EnergyThe grandchildren were all youngsters when their grandpa — my dad — died. They certainly were not interested in sorting through the belongings he left behind, which were primarily books and baseball caps and a decent start on tracing his family’s Irish lineage and immigration, plus files of correspondence and…Weddings5 min readWeddings5 min read
Sep 5Un-serious FoodWonderfully, over the last week, many different people have cooked for me. Cooking does all the things: builds confidence, creates connections, the whole giving-and-recieving dynamic, plus it’s delicious and keeps us alive. There is no downside to this kind of intimate act of ‘here, eat this’, regarding food someone cooks…Cooking5 min readCooking5 min read
Aug 10Underside of AugustRight before a rainstorm hits, leaves on the local trees turn over and show their underside (we used to say they ‘turned inside-out’) and you know it’s about to pour. Maybe that’s just a northeast-Ohio-thing, which I find is true about a lot of my longheld practices. If you grew…Weather5 min readWeather5 min read
May 21Now, and LaterThat whole every-end-is-a-beginning thing is happening, particularly for those of us in higher education. Graduation-time is always packed with all the emotions, and for this class, our 23s, it’s just a little bit extra. Without question, we asked a metric ton of these 23s. The lifting and carrying they have…Graduation6 min readGraduation6 min read
Apr 23From the Dead-EndWe raised our kids on a dead-end street, blocks from the local high school and vibrant village, uphill from the park with free concerts at the ampitheater, running trails, playgrounds, baha trails in the woods, and in earshot of the football field that two different programs called their home-field and…Civility5 min readCivility5 min read
Mar 26How the Delta LiesI went to Mississippi this month. I am never coming back. Oh, I’m back, but I’m not the same. Even when we were there, we sometimes could only process what we were learning by saying ‘that’s so Mississippi.’ Sometimes that is still the answer — incomplete, and completely true. The…Civil Rights8 min readCivil Rights8 min read
Feb 16The Rumble and the RoarPeople write songs about trains. Majestic, mysterious, powerful, ominous, formidable, romantic — trains are all the things. But few people desire to live near traintracks or rail yards. Homes near tracks and yards are worth less than comparable homes elsewhere. Deisel fumes and toxic dust lead to increased risk of…Railways5 min readRailways5 min read
Jan 1Now. Here. This.Well, it was a year, all right. Like most of us, there have been better, and there have been worse. This year, though, I promised to be IN IT. To not be leveled by the hits that seem to just keep coming, to rally, speak truth into action, show up…Year In Review5 min readYear In Review5 min read
Nov 2, 2022A Mighty Front PorchMy own faith journey is messy, complicated, a work-in-progress. But it does exist, it is unfolding. Not long ago, I heard that old stalwart hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” reframed to include thinking of God as a place of protection and shelter rather than an actual ‘fortress’. Not…Cancer5 min readCancer5 min read
Oct 2, 2022Peace through Mis En PlaceMost of us cook because we have to feed the people in our house, or just ourselves. There is a love/hate synergy with cooking, and if you are Team H, well, the advent of food delivery apps was probably a gamechanger for you. For those of us on the Love…Cooking5 min readCooking5 min read
