Tag: spirituality
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Flipping Patterns
One of my favorite stories that my mom used to tell is about when she was trying to make a dress. She laid out the fabric on the table and pinned the pattern to the fabric. She carefully cut out each piece, but she was having trouble with the dress sleeves. She kept getting two…
Marian
confirmation, Edward Hays, Elsie Korth, God’s love, keeping company with God, listening for God, Lord’s Prayer, Nancy Kornelsen, Our Father, patterns, Philip Yancey, piano prayer, prayer, prayer patterns, Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim, reflections, spirituality, structured prayer, talking with God, The Lord’s Prayer -
A 50-cent Thrill
I learned a new word last week – “mirabilary.” Well, it’s not exactly a new word – just new to me. The dictionary (if you can even find it in your dictionary) says it’s obsolete. The 101-year-old 1913 edition of Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary defined it as, “One who, or a work which, narrates…
Marian
50 cents, 50-cent thrill, assisted living, awakened living, bolt out of the blue, Book of Wonders, daily devotions, devotional book, divine visitation, Edward Hays, God’s love, joy, kind deeds, kindness, life challenges, lightning, listening for God, love your neighbor, Madison Symphony Orchestra, mirabilaries, mirabilary, Overture Center, parking garage, parking meter, reflections, spirituality, talking with God, two quarters, unexpected kindness, wonder-worker, wonderstruck -
Ashamed
I’ve never been as ashamed of my evangelical roots as I’ve been this past week. Although I am currently a Lutheran with fairly liberal leanings on social issues, nothing ever has been more important to me than loving God and loving my neighbors on earth as a demonstration of that love. As an infant, I…
Marian
ashamed, bullying, bullying by evangelicals, evangelical bullies, evangelicals, gay marriage, God’s love, humanitarian efforts, kindness, life challenges, listening for God, love your neighbor, personnel policy, reflections, same-sex marriage, spirituality, sponsor a child, sponsor children, talking with God, Wheaton College, World Vision -
We Laughed and Laughed and Laughed

Some of my fondest memories of my parents are of Mim and me sitting together with them around the dining room table, talking about our everyday lives, and laughing and laughing and laughing. In the 1970s and 1980s when Mim and I lived in Chicago, we drove to Wisconsin to visit my parents about once every…
Marian
All for one and one for all, Apache creation story, assisted living, be always grateful, be joyful always, Chasing Joy, Country Comforts, Country Comforts Assisted Living, Edward Hays, friends, God’s love, happy times, hospitality, invincible joy, joy, laughed, laughing, laughter, pray always, reflections, sharing joy, spirituality, talking with God, Three Musketeers -
The Blessings of Awful Stories in the Bible
There are some pretty awful stories in the Bible – like the story of Tamar in Genesis. She was a young widow who disguised herself as a temple prostitute in order to entrap her father-in-law into having sex with her so that she would have a son. Have you ever wondered why that story is…
Marian
awful Bible stories, awful stories, fairness, friends, God’s love, hard decisions, hymn sing, jail ministry, joy, kindness, life challenges, life changes, listening for God, love your neighbor, praying for each other, reflections, sharing our stories, sharing stories, singing together, spirituality, talking with God, Tamar, tough decisions, worship service -
I had a dream
One night last week I dreamed I was hurrying as fast as I could. I was at an airport, Philadelphia, I think. I was alone, running to find my gate to catch my flight. I made a quick stop in one of the restrooms on my way. Then I continued running toward my gate, carrying…
Marian
Alan Fadling, An Unhurried Life, dream, fasting, giving up hurry, God’s love, hurry, hurrying, Jan Persson, kindness, Lent, life challenges, life changes, listening for God, love your neighbor, Northwest Industries, not hurrying, Philadelphia, Philadelphia airport, reflections, rushing, spirituality, Stephen A. Macchia, talking with God -
Hurry Up!
Yesterday morning, after breakfast, Abbey and I went outside for our usual morning walk. The sun was shining in a clear blue sky, but the temperature was 8 below zero. I put on my winter boots, bundled up with my down-filled jacket and pulled the hood over my head. Abbey waited patiently while I slipped…
Marian
Abbey, Alan Fadling, An Unhurried Life, conversation with Abbey, daily devotions, eating snow, fast from hurry, fasting for Lent, fasting from hurry, hurry, hurry up, Jesus Calling, joy, leisurely pace, Lent, life challenges, listening for God, morning walk, perfect word, reflections, sarah young, spirituality -
Let the birthdays begin!
Let the birthdays begin! Anna, the first of our trio of 92-year-olds, celebrated her 93rd birthday on Sunday. I asked her how she felt about turning 93. Her response: “I don’t feel like I’m that old. It’s just a number. It doesn’t mean anything. Life is good.” Carolyn will turn 93 in June, and Marty…
Marian
92-year-olds, 93rd birthday, Anna, art of living, assisted living, birthday, birthdays, colored pencils, Country Comforts Assisted Living, Daisaku Ikeda, day care, East Madison Monona Coalition on Aging, EMMCA, friends, Herman Melville, journey to wisdom, kindness, know how to grow old, let the birthdays begin, life calling, life changes, master work of wisdom, Reaching Out Respite, reflections, spirituality, wisdom -
I Have Something to Confess
I have something to confess, a sin of omission. It’s something that’s been on my mind off and on for the past sixty years. This sin of omission really weighed heavily on my conscience for the first year or two. Now it just comes to mind occasionally. It happened when I was a little girl.…
Marian
Albert Camus, atomic bomb, atomic bomb test, Bhagavad Gita, confessions, conscience, Doctor Atomic Symphony, Francois Rabelais, George Washington, God’s love, grandma, grandma’s house, guilty conscience, Hindu Bhagavad Gita, J. Robert Oppenheimer, John Adams, listening for God, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Manhattan Project, Oppenheimer, reflections, remorse, sin of omission, spirituality, Stanley Home Products, Stanley Party, Stella Lillesand, Sunday School teacher, talking with God, The Madison Symphony Orchestra -
The Three Nonagenarians
Three 92-year-old women walk into a bar – an artist, a nun, and a state legislator. The bartender asks what he can get them. The artist wants a cup of herbal tea; the nun wants half a glass of milk; and the legislator asks for one glass of red wine – specifically, Menage a Trois.…
Marian
92-year-olds, Adventures in Hospitality, assisted living, companions, Country Comforts, Country Comforts Assisted Living, friends, God’s love, hospitality, joy, kindness, life calling, life challenges, life changes, life stages, listening for God, love your neighbor, nonagenarian, reflections, spirituality, stage in life, talking with God, three nonagenarians
