November. Not my favorite month of the year. Darkness draws in as days shorten. Temperatures drop. The furnace hums. Coats, scarves and hats hang from the hall tree. I’m constantly wrapped in an alpaca blanket, trying to stay warm. I love the glories of fall foliage, but some of us (me included!) suffer from SAD—Seasonal Affective Disorder—so this can be a tough time of year. No wonder … [Read more...]
…And Grace My Fears Relieved
Amazing Grace is one of my all-time favorite songs. Written by a former slave-trader who lived a less- than-stellar life before he met Christ, this usage defines grace as God’s eternal, life-saving, undeserved favor. The origins of grace in Latin are related to thankfulness --and in Greek, to rejoicing. God is thankful and rejoices over us when we recognize and accept his graciousness (Isaiah … [Read more...]
The Kids Are Alright
It’s hard not to feel as if the world’s on the brink of collapse these days. Five minutes of the evening news is enough to warrant Zantac. It doesn’t help that I write on policy (among other things), and so I am often online digesting politics with my morning cereal. Guess what? Politics doesn’t naturally lead to gratitude. Who knew. Right now, people seem inscrutable, rhetoric is flammable, … [Read more...]
5 Things I Learned from Our Pilgrimage to the Holy Door
Holy Doors are massive bronze works of art located in selected cathedrals and basilicas around the world. They are only opened during Jubilee Years which typically occur once every 25 years. Not surprisingly, the traditional Holy Door is in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, but on December 8, 2015, Pope Francis announced the Jubilee Year of Mercy and designated 8 Holy Doors around the world. The only … [Read more...]
The Goodbye Salute: Noah Transitions to Middle School
In the gymnasium at North Bend Elementary, a smallish school in a mostly agrarian county in northeast Maryland, we parents sat packed together in tight rows. We were prepping for a transition. In the front of the gym, on the floor, were rows of children from kindergarten through fourth grade. They were present as witnesses to this celebration of the fifth graders. Today, the school would laud … [Read more...]
Plagues of People, Safety in Numbers
Children on the autism spectrum usually fall in one of two camps when it comes to their feelings about crowds: crowds are either an audience or a plague. For Jesse, crowds are an audience. He loves to mug, and show off, and recite what he knows about things of no interest to the listener. For Noah, crowds are a plague. This makes it a challenge to plan a wedding when both boys are also a part … [Read more...]