I realized two things this morning – I’m negative because I’m in the HABIT of being negative. I’m negative because it’s SAFE. Being negative is my first response because of the habit to do so. Being negative is a learned behavior because "If I’m wrong, then the ‘good thing’ benefit will outweigh that, but if […]

My current interest in mindfulness meditation for mental health, combined with some minor exploration of yoga for stretching / flexibility / movement, leads me to conclude that this issue is highly problematic for Christians. Meditation and body movement are two incredible tools for mental health. These tools are crippled by inappropriate chatter from Christians, and […]

But what on earth to do with those moments where it really doesn’t feel like God knows what He’s doing? Or that He doesn’t care.

Maybe because they misunderstood badly. Maybe because you didn’t know what to say. Maybe they came to a different conclusion, Maybe they don’t want to pray how you pray. There’s always the chance That they’re smarter than you, That their experiences teach them Things you never knew. Maybe they’re hoping that lies will be true, […]

I want to go back to a paper notebook. I love my phone, I love my iPad, and I love my laptop(s). And I’ve almost gotten to where I can keep all the necessary notes on those devices. But I miss paper. Tho I don’t miss having to keep up with it. I’m such an […]

So, I’ve been reading some books written by folks who "left" the Westboro Baptist Church "cult". I’m not quite ready to be "public" with the thoughts that have invaded my poor, overloaded brain, but there are many. Quite a few of those thoughts are deeply troubling. The impact of our need for "family" on how […]

I read a Substack last week that blew my mind. Elizabeth Berg is a professional writer, so one would expect her to write well. That said, "Let’s Go To Hawaii" was just an incredible read. The part that amazed me most was the recall, the detail of the events. I’m sure there was some literary […]

I stumbled on this letter as a result of Googling myself, which I had no real reason to do. This is a complicated issue to post an article about, but I wrote this back in December of 2016, it appears. 6+ years ago. I don’t follow John Piper now, and I’m not sure I could […]

Yesterday evening, about 6:30, as I climbed into the shower, I got the sad news that Aunt Birdell, "Granny Birdell" to so many, had passed away about 5pm. I didn’t cry, and that felt odd. I told Karma later that I "didn’t know how to feel", and she was puzzled and said "Why?" I said […]

I believe in stories. Human beings have a need to record events. There’s a type of memory known as "autobiographical memory", but, sadly, we often have trouble recalling that area completely accurately. We forget things. We get confused. "Time" is often distorted; because the events are there, but they’re not timestamped. They’re always recorded as […]