I grew up in the Lehigh Valley ofPennsylvania, first settled by Moravians, German speaking Protestants fromEastern Europe suffering persecution in the 17th and 18thcenturies. They chose biblical names fortheir communities. My hometown was Emmaus, for example. And it was a short distance from there toBethlehem, known as “The Christmas City.” The Moravians have many beautiful traditions and hymns for theholidays. One of my favorite Christmascarols is “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” One verse goes,..
I married a photographer! I didn’t know that at the time - not that it would have made any difference in my decision to marry this amazing man who had entered my life..
Life Hymn-list One of the blessings of this pandemic time has been the regular schedule of meetings with the “circle” of folks who participate in writing this blog. We..
Her name was Emma MacDonald. She was a single lady, at that time known as a spinster: a woman dedicated to the training and teaching of piano lessons for young children...
After five months on the job, I nearly lost it. Because of Palm Sunday. We opened with the grand processional hymn “All Glory, Laud and Honor.” The choir, the children..
My great grandmother would come to visit and stay for a couple of weeks each year. Together with my mother they would play piano duets in the evening after I had been..
Being Mortal is a meditation on how the many triumphs of modern medicine have impacted end of life decisions. We have many choices to make as we face death from our..
I had put the job off for several weeks. Excuses were easy: I don’t have time now; it’s not really important; no one will notice. But my compulsive-work-oriented-self..
Illuminating books. We can read that phrase a couple of different ways. Are books, by their contents illuminating? Do they shed new understanding on life’s experiences..
Slide projectors, each with its own carousel, were stacked three high. They were managed by a dissolve unit, and by the creativity of the writer/photographer whose..
