I have an almost magical belief in books. I expect to find guidance for whatever question or problem I’m wrestling with just by picking up the right book. And why not? I know I’m not the first person to go through whatever it is that’s tripping me up at any given time. While I...
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...
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...
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....
The playground scene haunts me still. Kathleen stood in the middle of a circle of chanting children. Her eyes were wide, haunted. Her body was taut. The chorus was loud. “I can see London. I can see France. I can see somebody’s underpants.” We all knew the ditty and used it when a boy’s...
Robin and I are at an age where we are grateful for every day we wake up healthy. Body parts sag, slow, and wear out. We tire more easily than we did when we were younger. Still, each day offers a full measure of joy. We eat, exercise, socialize, and pursue interests about which...
Growing up in Twin Falls, Idaho, I had no words for people who loved differently from the model we considered “normal”. Not that all the families around us led Leave-It-to-Beaver lives. My own nuclear family consisted of a single mother, an absent father, a resident brother, and four half siblings who didn’t live close...
It was the Baby who brought me safely home. Mother tucked the tiny plaster figure into my hand before she left me alone, in a hospital bed. She couldn’t stay with me. A single mother with two young children had to work. So she told me Baby Jesus would look after me. I clutched...
At 57 I found myself on my own, trying to rebuild my shattered finances. I spent a lot of time envisioning a lonely old age, probably holed up in a shabby room somewhere. No one to play with. No one to notice if I didn’t open my door for a week. You get the...
Sometimes I look back at my life and wince, but mostly I trace the meandering path with gratitude. I’ve carried a bag of troubles, as everyone does, but these days it seems light. When I open the bag, I see shiny baubles instead of lumps of coal. They have been transformed by time. I...
Relaxing my skepticism John Robbins came to Kelowna last Thursday. He filled the Kelowna Community Theatre with his message of hope. A lot of us went home feeling a little taller, a little more peaceful. In spite of his being the author of seven best sellers, Robbins is probably the most modest guru I’ve...
Surf Dog Ricochet failed as a service dog. She excels as a surfing fundraiser. A link to the latest video about this special dog arrived on a day I was pondering the suicides of six young Americans. What all of the deaths had in common was that each of the young men had been...
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