Singing Along the Journey

#capitolhillwalks

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More

Seeing is believing…or is it?

I think a lot about the relationship between our physical senses and our spiritual understanding of our selves and the universe of which we are a part, particularly as I wander the streets in the early morning hours of the day. And more often than not, I am thinking about the importance of what we think we see and what we think that means, an importance that informs our identity and our interactions with life around us. I mean, what do we do with these images? I keep thinking about this quotation from Rainer Maria Rilke's poem, "The Turning Point," (translated by Stephen Mitchell): The work of the eyes is…
Read More

Sunrises and ear worms…

Some mornings have a soundtrack, whether or not you want it. Right now, my morning walk falls in what I call the sunrise sweet spot. I step off in the dark, but, with any luck, at sometime during the walk, I see the passage from dark to light in the skies. And years of music, both church music and the secular classical world, mean that stored somewhere in that grey matter between my ears are a whole lot of tunes to feed my personal soundtrack. Today was one of those We Shall Behold Him kind of moments. Those moments happen often as I live into the arrival of the fall…
Read More

Park benches and the water of life…

Lately I am noticing the subtleties of a summer sunrise. I mean not even I can rise early enough in June and July to walk before the sun is fully risen, no matter what advantage that would give me in terms of temperature and crowded sidewalks.  In the heat of the past month here in DC, the word subtleties would not have seemed to apply to the way I experienced the sun on my morning race to get my exercise in while being outside was still mildly possible. But as August moves into September, more and more days, my feet step out onto the pavement with light, yes, but with…
Read More

Hints of resurrection…

I have to give credit to my friend Mitzi Budde for the phrase that has become the title. This was her observation and it stuck. I continue to be in awe of this plucky little former tree. This was what hope looked like on a Wednesday morning. Not the greatest picture, but if you look at the bright green shoots with the tinge of color, that's what I'm talking about. Three weeks before this morning late in August, a tree surgeon came and cut down our beloved 20+ year old crepe myrtle. It had split under the weight of snow during the winter and then picked up an infestation called…
Read More

Contemplating the unexpected…

I owe the phrase of this title to my friend the Rev. Kathy Guin. Sometimes, others can see so much better than I can, even when I know that I see something. Sometimes it is through the eyes of others that we actually can see what we are doing, and a little bit about why we do it. I was just surprised by the presence of a light, dainty, pink rose after weeks of a Washington-style heat wave. I mean, I was only able to write, "As the hottest stretch of summer continues, all over the neighborhood, the roses have decided to bloom again...this little one is mine, on a…
Read More

Unexpected benefits…

I've taken a brief pause from adulting which lately has been in overdrive. No sooner were repairs to the ironwork complete and the contract for the kitchen renovation signed than the air conditioning system died completely, just as the heat climbed. I've gotten all ducks kind of in a row, the new AC will be installed on Monday, all permits have been obtained and posted in the 100+ heat, and I'm heading for the hills...literally. I've used all my adult cards for the next quarter, folks. One by product of the permit process, though, is this deep summer portrait of the front door, a view I don't often have of…
Read More

For the beauty of the earth…

I always think that I have planned my garden well, that I have spaced things nicely and given each and every plant enough space to do its own thing. And then comes the end of June and the full sun of a DC summer. And the rain, there is so much rain sometimes (like this year). And silly me, I forget that those growing conditions turn plants labeled as "growing to 12 inches in diameter" into plants that would cover a small car with their height and width. I planted new rose bushes this year, and I was oh so sure that I had taken everything into consideration. And yet,…
Read More

Do you think I planted enough…

Daylilies. The final word in that sentence is daylilies. And maybe roses. I'm not sure if I planted enough of either. I've just returned from more time in the mountains of the western part of Virginia, and I returned to a flower explosion. I like that. Yes, I probably planted a few things too close to one another, but hey, I can always move them in the fall. And no matter how carefully I scan the planting guidelines, I never get the distancing right. That is mostly because nothing ever grows to the size stated in those guidelines -- most plants get at least two times bigger than specified! I…
Read More

Lo, how a rose ‘ere blooming…

No. I haven’t jumped ahead to Christmas. I am fully aware that today is Thanksgiving. Painfully aware most of the time. The day we celebrate as Thanksgiving is such a complicated day for so many, and for me. Even without the personal struggles that so many of us (myself included) face as the holiday onslaught of images of perfect families and perfect houses and perfect lives flood our way, there are the cultural struggles that we face as we work our way through the mythology of “America” to something closer to a truthful history of the taking of this land. I survive all of this internal complexity by holding tight to the…
Read More