When Henri Nouwen’s life was interrupted by the death of a loved one, confronted by poverty, his quiet monastic life by busyness, and his emotional safety by the collapse of a deep friendship, Nouwen, a Roman Catholic priest and spiritual writer asks in Beyond the Mirror, “Where is God? And Who is God for me?”…
Writing my Frasier Island series was a labor of love. My father served in the US Navy during World War II, and researching these books put me in touch with several people knowledgeable about the Navy. The whole experience gave me a much deeper appreciation of our military and of my father’s generation, who sacrificed…
I stared at my plastic plate, listening to my friend chat. Our second year of college would end in a few days, and we were attending the usual “end of the spring semester” picnic. Around me, classmates and dorm buddies ate grilled chicken and talked about their summer plans, worst final exam moments, and what…
Right around the time I wrote my debut novel, Blaze, my parents had decided to separate. It felt as though someone had knocked the wind out of my chest. In that moment, I knew what would follow six months later: divorce. Growing up, I always viewed divorce as the ultimate evil. Most of my friends…
[Susan Kimmel Wright] These Are the Times Set for Us
Maybe we rode a subway to work in the city or got up to feed the chickens. Coronavirus’s new restrictions and fears have changed our lives in a heartbeat. Hunkering down under a stay-at-home order, I can’t help thinking about a long-ago conversation with my grandma Blanche, who survived the Great Flu Epidemic of 1918.…
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