A Blurred Reflection

Tag: hardships

  • Less is more (usually)

    I’m preparing myself for a minimalistic future. Something around 90 square feet, if all goes as planned, so needless to say I have some changes to make. Today I took my first step in downsizing. I just chose one clothing item to start with. Dresses. This shouldn’t take long, I thought. I was wrong. That dark, cobweby…

  • If my hike had a soundtrack…

    The air was the perfect flavor of pine and clean wind as I sauntered along the smooth, shaded path past Lake Hebron that warm-but-not-too-warm day. The loons cried their short-lived daytime conversation and a bandana’d youth sat contemplatively underneath a fir tree, watching the reflection of clouds sweep across the slightly rippled water. His iPod played…

  • Victors

    Tonight, the headlines irrevocably declare: “120 Dead in Paris Attacks, Worst Since WWII”. Terror is spreading across our planet, and the people of this planet, like ancient wooden ships adrift in a storm, scatter. Some cry, some shout “Revenge!”, some huddle in the paralysis of fear. Some hold up signs that say ‘NOT AFRAID’–a distinctive…

  • It’s Gonna Be OK

    Ever have those days when you just want to sock yourself in the face? You’ve tried so hard to do the right thing, to be that person you want yourself to be, but in the end you crashed miserably and burned a whole pile of people in the process. All the time and effort you’ve put…

  • But He Always Offers Rest

    2 weeks ago, I was part of an amazing scouting adventure in the Florida Everglades. A recon. Research, networking, exploration and a harvesting of as many Glades skills as we could scavenge. My co-guides and I all knew it would be, to borrow the favorite expression of my friend Kathy, a very “interesting situation”. New adventures…

  • That Bum On My Couch

    I was in the second-to-front pew at church the other week, and I was feeling the morning blues. Do you know what I mean? That sandy-eyed, groggy-voiced, brain-not-quite-awake feeling of sluggishness that isn’t really ready for 120 decibels of worship music being emanated directly in front of oneself. Don’t get me wrong, the band was great. I…

  • The Terror That Flieth By Night….

    It was three a.m. and I awoke to purring in the rafters above my bed. If I would have woken up hungry for a snack, it would have been ok, and I would pilfered some cookies and gone back to bed. If it had been a housemate sleep-talking, no big deal. If it had been…

  • What I learned about Jesus from the Ironman Triathlon

    Think about what it means to be strong in the Lord, and tell me what you see. I always knew better in my mind, but when push came to shove I used to believe that God wanted macho, 6-pack body-builders of the faith. The ones who overcame all odds by pure determination. Somehow, I switched out the word…

  • Jesus was homeless, too.

    I don’t live in the city anymore, but when I did, I never once gave money to sign-holders. I’ve never dropped even so much as a quarter in a Salvation Army bucket. That’s a shame. No, it’s more than that. It’s a complete disgrace. I met a homeless man named Richard LeMieux last week, and if I would have judged…

  • Don’t eat in the shower, kids.

    If you had an awkward week, let me tell you about mine. Maybe it will make you feel better. I had to practice my swimming this week, and this is how it went. I didn’t make my week’s goal. I had to call someone I’d never called before, and I didn’t know his voicemail only lasts…