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....
For over twenty years my mother did the bookkeeping for a seed company in Twin Falls, Idaho. The salary was low. Hours were long. She worked five and a half days a week and never got more than a couple weeks of vacation. I don’t know if she loved the job. I do know...
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...
“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...
For a long time, I’ve known my communications deficiencies were deeper than being limited to English, with a smattering of French and German. My animal communication skills are weak. (I’ve written about some of my attempts on Catching Courage: Compassion of crows, Participating in a miracle, Standing broad jumps, Black Boy). Sometimes I mess...
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...
Mother had modest expectations when she encouraged me to attend church college in Lamoni, Iowa. She figured Graceland College (now one campus of Graceland University) was the best place for me to find a husband who was a member of our small sect, the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (which...
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