The amateur photographer in me saw Rich Lam’s photograph of the kissing couple in the middle of Vancouver’s June 15, 2011, riot and thought, “Wow, lucky guy. What an incredible catch.” I was considering the photographer lucky, not the boyfriend. Canadian Alexandra Thomas and Australian Scott Jones have become media darlings as a result...
When I was growing up, I was proud to be American. I ate national pride with my breakfast cereal. I still love the country of my birth, but now I’m embarrassed by a lot of what I hear and see. Too much of what’s happening these days eats away at the values I embrace....
I feel tender toward the uncertain young woman I was when my life seemed to be spinning out of control. I want to tell her things will turn out all right. She’ll survive the crashes. Sometimes she’ll soar. There will never be a day when something good doesn’t happen. She’ll find happiness, not as...
Robin’s daughter, Michelle, once gently reminded me to be patient with people who had not yet wrapped their minds – or hearts – around acceptance for people whose sexuality was different from what they considered “normal”. She was right. She is a wise young woman, and that’s good. Because soon she will be the...
“We all deserve to have fun, live large, and be ridiculed by less imaginative people existing under the erroneous assumption they get extra credit for being prudent and safe.” Patti Digh, Life Is a Verb: 37 Days to Wake Up, Be Mindful, and Live Intentionally I’ve spent a lot of time in my life...
One of many moves took me to Oakland, California. I’d spent the previous nine years living thirty kilometers from the nearest town. Sometimes that felt achingly lonely. I decided my next chapter would be walking distance to everything. I found a small, one-bedroom apartment in a neighbourhood that bordered Lake Merritt. I was in...
Recently I had a bout of itchiness. It’s not something I’m accustomed to, particularly waking in the middle of the night wanting to scratch my skin off. I’m sure that’s what caused a weird dream about worms. They were attaching themselves to me, growing from the size of a seed to full-grown wrigglers in...
Regular readers of Catching Courage will recognize the name of this poem’s author, Marilyn Raymond. This is the sixth of her poems to appear here. The others are Sunflowers, That Apple, Baba Yaga, Sucking on Stones, and Anne. Marilyn wrote the poem for a special Women’s Day service at the Unitarian Fellowship of Kelowna....
Earthquakes in New Zealand and Japan. Floods in Australia. Battles in Libya. Rising food and fuel prices. The sobering news never ends. Our brief human history is rife with human and natural disasters. So how best to live? One of my role models was a small, fierce chicken. The chicken had nothing more to...
This video of Patrick Henry Hughes was uploaded just over four years ago. It bears re-visiting. Born without eyes and unable to walk or fully straighten his arms and legs, Patrick might have become just another sad story. His father’s fierce love and Patrick’s own determination changed the ending. Patrick showed an aptitude for...
Since I posted a link to it in January 2010, Story of a Sign has been my favorite video ad on YouTube. Now Dream Rangers, which is based on a true story, is competing for that spot. As the short film begins, we see a group of old Taiwanese men gathered around a table....
Geert Chatrou used to drive his family crazy with his constant whistling. Then the Dutch whistler’s sister-in-law told him about the International Whistlers Convention in Louisburg, North Carolina. Life has never been the same. He won World Championships in 2004, 2005, and 2008. Now he whistles for his living. Chatrou’s talent is stunning, but...
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