Above the din
"People have grown accustomed to the elimination of the poetry of the world, to the mechanization of life, to the expulsion of beauty; but this…
Transcendent beauty
There's a powerful moment in J.R.R. Tolkien's novel, The Return of the King, when Sam is encouraged by the light of a star. He's engaged…
Twenty
Yesterday Diedra and I celebrated twenty years of matrimony. We went out to dinner at a wonderful place called Vera Mae's Bistro. The weather was…
Invest in beauty
The peonies popped this week. We were given a luxurious bouquet of enormous pink blooms by some dear friends. "Magnificent" just doesn't seem to do.…
Musical words
Great writing has a certain musicality about it. It sounds pleasing to the ear when you hear it read aloud. Great writing is also delightful…
Inner disposition
"Give me a lover and he feels what I am saying: give me one who yearns, give me one who hungers...give me one like this,…
We need beauty
Winter has its own beauty. Blankets of snow. Hoarfrost clinging to branches. Cloudless skies with sun glaring off white fields--paradoxically warming your face through the…
Bob Ross
I have a Bob Ross bobblehead on my bookcase in my office. If you push the button, he says some of his famous lines: "You…
Look and listen
I have a close friend who is mostly deaf. I've learned so much from him. He's given me a glimpse of how sound-dependent I am.…
Notre Dame
April 15th, 2019, the day after my fortieth birthday, I heard news that made me nauseated. Notre Dame Cathedral (Paris, France) was burning. My reaction…