Lent begins

 Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, so I've been thinking about ways to enter the spiritual dessert in order to draw closer to Christ, to become more like him, and to prepare to celebrate the resurrection. However, today was a bit of a slow start.  Our daughter has stayed home for school two days with a low but persistent fever, headache, and lethargy. 

I've felt a bit lethargic myself, but not because of the flu. I was lying awake contemplating last night and realized I've been falling prey to acedia, aka sloth, particularly spiritual sloth.  The irony is that I used to pride myself for being busy and productive, although as I look back over the years, I have definitely fallen into slothful ways many times in the past.  In fact, I wonder if for most of my life, I have been busy and productive, but as a way to procrastinate, a way to avoid being attentive to the things that matter.  

My oldest daughter asked me for photos of herself when she was two, so I was looking back in the photo albums and was saddened by the few, poor quality photos that we have.  Of course, those were the years when we actually developed film or sent digital images to CVS to be printed because there were no phones for taking, storing, and reviewing photos. I wished I had more photos of those days.  The memories of them have faded, although the pictures bring them back.  I haven't printed photos in years, even though I treasure looking at prints.  Is this procrastination? Yes, but also a way to recall happy memories. But I also wondered if perhaps I didn't have many photos because I wasn't attentive in the moments...

So for Lent, I'm going to try to fight acedia and re-devote myself to avoiding those things that only offer distraction, especially distractions from doing what is right and good. Number one offense: social media, especially Facebook and Instagram. I'm excusing blogging because it is contemplative.  Those other platforms used to be ways to keep up with family. Now they are just a waste of time watching content that someone else made that serves to anger or to numb. 

The physical fasting is easier because we have done this now for serveral years: no sweets, drinks, meats, or good coffee. (I'm still drinking coffee, but not as much and not the good kind.)

I intend to offer up long showers, in union with my Laudato Si class, as well as being late. This is a recommendation from my husband, and it will be hard. It is related to acedia though, because I am late when I am wasting time - not because I have really important things to do, but because I either don't plan or don't pay attention.  

Same thing with staying up late. Both things inconvenience him. They are selfish. So to bed!  Praying for a fruitful and blessed Lent. 

Reading Revived!

 All of this winter weather has been good for my reading life.  After a lackluster reading year in 2025, I'm off to a quick start in 2026.  In the beginning of the January, I finished Provocations of Virtue, a book on teaching writing and rhetoric with a focus on ethical discourse by a professor at Notre Dame, John Duffy.  He provides some thoughtful approaches to encouraging the careful composition of words and ideas. I appreciated his focus on an ethical approach to writing - not just that students to persuade their readers to make ethical decisions, but that writers make ethical decisions about the way they treat their audience. By envisioning their audience as readers/listeners who deserves respect and whose trust must be earned, writers and speakers write with more precision and consideration. As a teaching text but also a researched text, Duffy's book was practical and interesting, challenging and motivating. I intend to return to it regularly for guidance on moderating difficult discussions, steering students towards reliable sources, and providing suggestions for addressing different points of view.  

After exercising my brain by reading Duffy's book, I gave my brain some junk food by reading the prequels to the Hunger Games trilogy, Ballad of the Songbirds and Snakes and Sunrise on the Reaping.  I have mixed feelings about the Hunger Games books, as do many readers.  I didn't encourage my kids to read them, but some of them did as high schoolers. I see middle schoolers reading them, but unless you have a really mature 8th grader, I wouldn't recommend them for preteens. The themes are dark and the violence is too much, even sometimes for me, but maybe I'm more squeamish than some (I really had to steel myself to remove dead mice - the last two days I've caught mice under the sink in snap traps. After seeing one scurry under the dishwasher the other night, I had to take action. Glue traps weren't working, and I'm afraid of poisoned mice smelling bad. Snap traps may not be humane, but they work. Where there are two, there are probably more - I'll be setting the trap again tonight, to the peril of my fingers! Rodents creeping indoors is a drawback to winter not mentioned in my friend's reel...) A debate could be held about whether Suzanne Collins perhaps could tell her story without descriptions of decapitation and animal attacks.  People make an argument for the value of the books in highlighting injustice and depravity, but even though I tear through these books in a matter of hours, I don't really recommend them. Perhaps they fall into the category of books described by Stephen King in this essay. 

What I would recommend is any book by Wendell Berry. Like many other Berry fans, I love stepping into his world for a few hours. Marce Catlett: The Force of a Story is a slim book. It's not so much about Marce, grandfather of Andy Catlett who lost his hand, (although that episode doesn't figure in this text, something that I thought might be included) as it is about the story of a day he failed to sell his crop for what it was worth and about how the story of that day became a mythic part of the communal memory and a driving force in the family history.  Many critics are opining that this is Berry's last novel. However, in some ways, it is not quite a novel. It is a reflection on the power of story telling. It is an elegy for a lost way of life. It is a call to community and to advocate for the land that shapes communities.  It is a recollection of an education in the land and a love story to it. It is not my favorite of Berry's books; it seems slight, although it does have some evocative descriptions - descriptions that might do more to preserve a way of life than an essay calling for just compensation for agricultural products and for people to stand by the land. I'll try to share some excerpts later. I read somewhere that someone thought this book seems to be Berry's concession he has lost his battle to preserve family farms, even though he himself has managed to continue to stand by the land and stand by words. But I'm not so sure the battle has been lost. More people than ever are reading Berry, and in communities like the one where my parents live, people are still farming, helping each other out, coming together for meals, and preserving a small town way of life.  No doubt the creep of suburban and industrial development keeps coming closer, especially as data centers erupt overnight in rural communities, like the one not too far from us.  (I might be a fan of sending data centers to space, as has been proposed.) But if Berry's work continues to circulate and be discovered by new readers, it may yet call more people to return to the land.

But back to reading: a couple other short synopses: The Chosen by Chaim Potok. I LOVED this book when I first read it back in high school. It seemed so foreign and yet so American; it helped formed my imagination of ethnic communities in New York City. Potok's book is full of faith but also maintains a detached tone. It's the story of two young Jewish boys living in 1940's post-War II Brooklyn who become unlikely friends because they are the sons of very different fathers. One father is a Zionist Talmud scholar, and the other is a Hasidic rabbi who is against establishing a Jewish state. The two boys become friends despite their fathers' differing views and their own friend groups who don't overlap. It is a welcome description of the necessity of friendship, and how deep friendships can overcome difficulties. Despite the connection between the two boys, they go their separate ways at the end of the novel.  Readers can hope their friendship endures (and read the sequel, The Promise, which I have on my list).

The  most recent book I finished was The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams. This is a different book than Robert MacFarlane's The Lost Words: A Spell Book illustrated by Jackie Morris, which has been in my wish list for a long time. Williams' book was recommended by my sister-in-law. It is another one of those books that are hard to put down, but that for one reason or another won't make my favorites list. This one falls in the genre of "Stories about women in the past who react against their limitations to become unrecognized heroes in their sphere of influence." One of these I just finished at the end of last year - Rachel Kadish's The Weight of Ink about a Jewish girl in 17th c England who becomes an amanuensis for an old rabbi and then starts writing her own letters of philosophic inquiry to characters like Spinoza. I enjoy the historical settings and the development of the possible lives for intelligent women unrecognized by history, although sometimes the plots seem a little forced and there is always some romance shoehorned in. Williams's book is set during the construction of the Oxford English Dictionary. The main character, Esme, grows up in the Scriptorium where her father is one of the editors for the dictionary, which takes decades to complete. We see her grow up amongst words and become an editor herself eventually. Details about the dictionary and the history of the women's suffrage movement and the advent of WWI are fascinating, and the book seems well-researched. Esme begins collecting definitions of women's words for her own dictionary, some too coarse and some too domestic to be included in the OED.  The developments of friendships and love affairs move the book along. Esme becomes pregnant, even though she is not in love with the father, but the book provides a positive depiction of adoption. Even with these difficult topics and the love affair with words in both of these books, they read like popular rather than literary fiction and don't have the heft of Potok's or Berry's books, despite being much longer. 

Now on to the next thing! I've got several different books going now, but need to take a momentary break from "fast fiction" because it keeps me too late!

Winter updates

This morning we woke up to another 6 or 8 inches of snow, a heavy, wet snow that is difficult to shovel but good for snowmen and snowballs.  I wonder what it has done to St. Olaf's, the ice basilica on the campus of Notre Dame? Photos and film clips of the Mass that Fr. Pete, one of Notre Dame's most beloved priests right now, along with Fr. Greg, Holy Cross's religious superior, concelebrated on Monday night, for the Feast of Candlemas, have been a bright spot circulating the internet.

  

slipping in the igloo

My photos don't quite do it justice, so you should watch one of the videos, like this one: St. Olaf's

You might not be able to tell from my photos, but there is an ice altar, stained glass, and even ice crucifix inside. I'm not sure how they sculpted it, but it is beautifully done and quite the masterpiece.  When we walked by yesterday, a jar was overflowing with cash - a hand written note indicated donations would be given to Our Lady of the Road, a ministry to people in need on the south side of the city. My daughter and I volunteered there with other parishioners last week. We were on the clean up shift after the breakfast service, but many people were lingering over coffee and cold hash browns. Although it is not typically an overnight shelter, during this weather, the facility offers couches to sleep on, so we put washed sheets back on the couches and chairs, put away dishes and wiped tables. It wasn't much work, but it was a valuable reminder of the needs in our community.  

The basilica replica was built by a couple of architecture students. There's also an ice igloo - maybe a confessional? - next to it with a bench and sparkle lights, and in front of another dorm is the beginning of another structure- perhaps abandoned when the basilica set the standard for ice structures so high - but the half built walls look like the beginnings of a stage or a fort. 

We finally put our woodburning fireplace to use, and nothing is more pleasant than to sit by the fireplace and read after dinner. I have a friend who posted a video that flashed scenes of winter wrecks, people shoveling, and cars snowed in, followed by bright scenes of California palm trees waving in the sunshine, people walking the beach, and convertibles with the tops down, to point out how great California is. What it doesn't show is people laughing while skiing or sledding or building ice castles or staying cozy by the fire with a warm cup of tea!

This isn't reading by the fire - no photos yet! - but cozy reading in bed

The wonder is that all of these delights - and different kinds of difficulties (traffic jams, fires, storms) - are all a part of the experience of life in America.  If my kids learned anything from moving around, I hope they learned that there are many wonderful places and no perfect ones - except maybe the Yorkshire Dales! (loving this season of All Creatures Great and Small!)   

A flashback: it's the beginning of birthday season around here, and the little guy on the left in this photo just turned 26. Lots of happy memories!

Scenes from winter

During this winter of discontent, here are some scenes of winter wonder: 

Snow, snow and more snow around our house. Every day we have to shovel again because more snow has fallen during the night. Each morning and each evening, I check on our pond with 2 koi who are hopefully hibernating. I add pots of hot water around the filter and the bubbler to keep them from freezing. I don't know how the fish are going to make it. 

  

I tried to capture the glitter of the sun on the icy snow, but my camera/photo skills are not commensurate with the task.

   

Scenes from different days: An overlooked Christmas ornament and a snowman who since being made has been buried.

A couple weekends ago we went to Nashville to watch our daughter run at Vanderbilt. As a bonus, we visited the Country Music Hall of Fame to satisfy our middle schooler and visited with my cousin who is a Dominican sister and my college friend whose son was also running. 

  

Taylor Swift's outfits, a retrospective of Dolly Parton's career, and Elvis's gold Cadillac were highlights of the CMHF.

   

Oh! And some memorabilia from Hee-Haw!

On the way home we stopped to see my parents and family, and the next day we visited the Indianapolis Museum of Art, which was free in honor of Martin Luther King Day, with our granddaughter and our son and daughter-in-law. Nothing is sweeter right now than watching that baby discover the world. She is so adorable - curious and cute. 

 

 

The Clowes Pavilion has a light show. My grandparents often took me and my siblings to the Indianapolis Museum of Art, now called Newfields, but the galleries have changed a lot. I don't recognize much of the museum but this Tiffany window from the Indpls Presbyterian Church in honor of Benjamin Harrison, the courtyard, and the little dark room that houses a Rembrandt self-portrait, are all still familiar. The Robert Indiana LOVE sculpture used to be outside but has been moved in because of weathering.

I always love an image of Charity being mauled by hungry children.

Chilling

 It's interesting that a word - chilling - can have such disparate meanings. Right now the wind chill is bone chilling, but my coffee is sitting on the counter chilling.  The kids had a snow day because the temperatures were chilling the snow and ice and creating hazardous driving conditions, so we sat around all day, just chilling, doing crafts, playing cards, watching old movies, reading new books. 

And what is happening in Minneapolis and other areas is blood chilling. 

I try not to be political here. My main motivation for writing is to remember - what we did, what I read, where we traveled.  So I will remember this about this month: the weather was brutally cold, and the news was dark.

I am glad to hear the neighbors say that the weather isn't usually this bad. Our first winter in South Bend apparently has brought more snow and colder temps for longer periods that it has in years. I'm trying to remember my own school days, and I do remember a couple huge snowstorms, the worst ironically in March, a blizzard that hit the east coast especially hard over Spring Break, shutting down the Pennsylvania Turnpike, preventing students from returning, causing accidents and outages. I also remember being prideful about running outside nearly every day, even though we did our workouts on a beautiful indoor track that is still one of the nicest in the region. I have barely walked outside this month, let alone run. (Of course, I barely run any more regardless of temperatures, but I got cortisone shots in my feet to help with arthritis (!Am I that old!) before Christmas just so I could run again, but at least I can get out of bed without feeling crippled anymore).  

I'm not sure of the total snowfall this season, but snow has piled up to the top of our little garden fence. It melts occasionally when the sun comes out, even the air temps haven't been over 30 in weeks.  Even when the meteorologists have not predicted snow, more snow falls. School has been cancelled twice and had multiple 2 hour delays. I feel sorry for the 1st and 2nd period teachers who keep having to push back their lesson plans. Each 2 hour delay causes another kink in the planning. My early morning college classes were actually cancelled yesterday because another 6 inches fell in the wee hours unexpectedly. Road crews were caught off-guard, and the frigid temps made salting ineffective.

Like the unpredictable weather, news of events around the country have continued to get worse. The violent acts of ICE officers have been horrifying.  Equally distressing is the lack of accountability.  The use of deadly force is unjustified in the killing of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.  

I won't say more about what is happening in Minneapolis, other than to say that it has been difficult to focus on daily chores when national news is so chilling. What is curious to me is the kind of mental gymnastics that must occur to justify the support of president who continues to violate principles that uphold human dignity.  There are some who think that the show of force is necessary to control the disorder, but isn't the disorder a reaction to the use of force? When President Trump was elected a second time, although I thought it was pretty clear he was someone who would do and say anything to advance his own power and wealth, I could understand people voting for him because they disagreed with Democrats' policies and found their candidates objectionable and because Trump passed pro-life policies and appointed judges who supported pro-life policies in his first term. But as the year has gone on, the actions of the current administration have become more outrageous, and I find it harder to understand the continued support for a president who uses government power to punish political enemies, to manipulate markets, to alienate foreign allies, to hide his personal crimes, to destroy historic buildings, to sell public lands, to enable technology sector overreach, to profit from his position and seek to enrich himself and his collaborators by annexing other countries, and worst, to violate human dignity in all kinds of ways.

In the public sphere, every statement and every action is able to be argued, even video evidence. Nothing seems to be obvious or common sense. In teaching a public speaking class, I have become more and more attentive to the use of language to reveal and to deceive. The first book of Aristotle's Art of Rhetoric defines happiness and its constituent parts and lists things that bring about happiness - it seems to have nothing to do with the craft of public speaking. Aristotle also considers what is worthy of praise and lists actions considered noble and fine. He makes it clear that the good, happiness, is the goal of all rhetoric even though there may be different means of reaching that goal. I point this out to my students - we all want what is "good." We all want peace and security. We all want to live in a country where we can worship and speak freely. We all would prefer harmony to discord.  Often, political rhetoric has a negative connotation because it is used to label, if not to batter, political opponents. Rather than consider actions and ethics, people support a party and look the other way when their party does something that seems unprincipled. 

But does it not seem that core principles have been trampled? Actions that would have caused outrage if perpetrated by the opposing party seem to go overlooked now. When is the line crossed when the ends do not justify the means? 

I know that many supported the current administration because the policies and actions of the Biden administration violated some very important principles. But aren't there equally important principles being violated now? Is a third way possible? 

I don't know what the solution is - a third party isn't going to happen any time soon. But are there enough people frustrated by the battle to rise above the division in our political discourse and seek alternative paths?  The inflammatory rhetoric has led to inflamed actions.  And though tempers are hot, the news is chilling.  

Reading in Review

 Oh dear, this was a sad year for reading. I only read 31 books. I think I might have forgotten to list some, but the truth is that my reading was sorely limited this year, partly because of teaching full time in the spring, partly because of moving, partly because my attention and will are weak, and I watched more movies and scrolled through more media. Should I give myself grace for having weakened in my consumption of good literature? Or should I be honest about my failing and charge myself with the task of applying more self-discipline next year? 

Granted, I dedicated a lot of time to teaching, grading, and planning. Much of my reading was for school, either researching for class, or prepping to teach. My list includes rereads like The Outsiders and The Diary of Anne Frank and Night, which I will miss reading. They deserve regular rereading.  

In addition to the books on rhetoric and public speaking on my list, I also did quite a bit of reading online about teaching these subjects. I spent a lot of time on the American Rhetoric website reading classic speeches, as well as googling around for other good examples of the use and abuse of rhetoric. I read a bit about logic and fallacies.  (But I also spent much too much time on Facebook marketplace reading ads - an interesting study in rhetoric in itself. In the language of the amateur marketer.)

Now that we don't have such a comfortable place for watching tv (our new couch in the basement is not nearly as cushy), I suspect our tv watching will decrease. And I no longer need to scroll Zillow as I did much of the spring nor Facebook marketplace as I did much of the summer and fall nor shop for presents as I did much of December.  So I will have more time to read!

What were the highlights of my reading year?

I am glad I finished The Hunchback of Notre Dame, although I did not enjoy it very much. It was long and wordy, although I appreciated some of the descriptive parts and wish I had read it before our trip to Paris this summer. The characters were flat and static. Very little, if any character development - except to descend further into darkness, as Claude Frollo and his brother Jehan and the soldier Phoebus did. Esmeralda seemed to grow more stupid in her love for Phoebus. Gringoire became more of a caricature. And Esmeralda's mother seemed more insane that wracked by grief. No one seemed to have any interior life or sense of faith. Although the hunchback was the most sympathetic character, and he seemed to have the most virtue of any of the characters, Hugo made his virtue seemed almost more unintentional, like a blind loyalty or innate passion.  But I'm glad I stuck with it as a piece of literary history, and I feel some sense of accomplishment for finishing this classic, even though I found all of the characters disappointing, and none seem to be redeemed by the end of the novel.  Hugo's outlook seems to be similar to Thomas Hobbes' "life is nasty, brutish, and short." While the book was billed as an encomium to the Cathedral de Notre Dame, it made the cathedral seem a dark and foreboding place that hid misdeeds by the misguided and eventually corrupt/evil curate Frollo and a prison more than a place of refuge for Esmeralda and the hunchback. 

One book I enjoyed that was new to me was Giants in the Earth by Ole Rolvaag. This also was a book club pick, and I liked this one better than some of my fellow readers, although I did feel exasperated with the blindness of some of the characters. I always enjoy a story about the hard lives of pioneers on the prairie, though, and this one seemed to be a very true to life account of the harsh aspects of that time and place.  I reread Persuasion for this book club also- can't go wrong with Jane Austen! My brother, who is into online auctions now, bid on a set of 3 Jane Austen editions from the late 1800s- the ended up selling for around $700, so he didn't win the auction, but it shows the love her books deserve. 

My reading of young adult books has also trailed off, although my reading for class the first half of the year, which seems a lifetime ago now, was primarily middle grade fiction. I miss reading aloud with my daughter, a habit we dropped when we moved. She was tiring of listening to Anne Shirley novels, but I would be happy to pick them up again. Perhaps another resolution! I'm sure she'd love if we returned to that habit. We didn't keep the comfy folding papasan chair that I used to sit in to read, but now she has her sister's full bed, so there's plenty of room to cuddle up on a cold winter's eve. I just need to prioritize the practice. I did finish listening to The Hobbit in the car with her, as she was reading it for her 6th grade class, and I always enjoy the dramatized version, which we found on Internet Archive. 

Although my spiritual reading was primarily reflection pieces - I spent a lot of time finding prayers for the season for my class - I did do some reading related to our travels. I read Christy Wilkin's book about Lourdes, but perhaps my favorite spiritual reading was Plough magazine. I included these issues as books because I read each issue, 4 per year, cover to cover. The essays range from historical to theological to cultural and issues include art and poetry and a biography of a holy person. Although published by the Bruderhof, many of the writers are Catholics.  The Winter theme was Beauty and Work was the theme for the fall. It's the one print periodical I'm still subscribing to right now. 

I skimmed through a number of books on rhetoric before starting teaching this fall, and I did actually enjoy my close read of Aristotle's Art of Rhetoric. It is concerned as much with the nature of being human and being moved by emotions, motivated by virtue, and attracted to beauty, as with "rules" rhetoric and logic. Although some sections get bogged down in lists and definitions, it includes a number of observations about human nature that provide for good class discussions, such as what is happiness and what things inspire it? And what are the characteristics of a good life which are worthy of being deliberated? Justice and the characteristics of a government ruled by law are also topics of interest. A lot packed into a short book, and a reminder of how public speaking and writing form the character of our nation.  Although much public discourse is colored by incivility and ad hominem attacks and other fallacies of logic, learning about rhetoric perhaps can resolve some of that divisiveness as ideas are shared and thoughtfully debated.  One of the first books I finished for 2026 is John Duffy's Provocations of Virtue, which considers the rhetoric classroom as a learning lab for practicing ethics through discussion, debate, and learning to communicate ethically. It gave me a lot to think about at the opening of the semester.

Now it's time for me to get back to planning for this semester.  The recognition that my reading was severely diminished this year is a wake up call to dedicate myself more to intellectual discipline - turning off the phone and picking up the book. Of course, the goal isn't a number, but a growth in knowledge, understanding, curiosity, empathy, commitment, imagination, faith, motivation, etc. May the books I read be more than just a competition to best myself. Here's to turning more pages, but also turning over more ideas, in 2026!

From the Indianapolis Museum of Art

Hopes for the New Year

 Happy New Year, everyone!

Nearly two weeks into 2026, and I just learn that Wendell Berry has a new novel out - since October! Joy! How was this not on the top of my Christmas list? How did I miss this?  It's backordered now, but I've reserved a copy. 

Let me tell you, I have been disconnected from news that matters to me for some time. Unfortunately, I hear too much disturbing news on the national and local front, but I haven't kept up with news in arts and culture, or rather, that small niche of arts and culture that appeals to me. 

One of my new year's resolutions is to seek more reliable sources of information for my news of the world and the good, creative people in it - and to avoid social media and its commentators. Although there are real reasons for outrage over the travesty that is American politics, engaging - or even just observing - the outrage on social media is unhealthy, even if outrage is the appropriate response. Of course, social media is a big part of the problem. Although I signed up as a way to keep in touch with family and friends, it has now become a morass of clickbait and advertising, both of which are often false or misleading. 

Additionally, random scrolling has lessened my reading - not just my reading time, but my attention span. I'm just like a teenager! (Other than my gray hair, wrinkles, and saggy body . . .)

Woe! I am often a hypocrite! I tell my students to read real news, but I myself have fallen out of the practice since we moved.  Sadly, this is largely because I let my subscription to the WSJ lapse.  My kids tired of me telling them about something I read in the WSJ.   I don't know if the WSJ would have highlighted a new Wendell Berry book, although they should have. 

What I really miss is going to the library and seeing what's on the "What's New" shelf and picking up the new book review magazines to browse.  So perhaps another resolution - more trips to the library - or at least read more real books.

The library is not far from our house - less than 10 minutes. But my first two visits were not especially pleasant. The layout is rather broken up and not welcoming - the stairs are hidden, the reading rooms are all tucked away in corners, the division of genres is not intuitive - meaning I don't know where the books I typically like (fiction, theology, children's lit, lit crit, books of interest) are.  Also, there are a lot of people who haven't bathed recently using the reading chairs as nap spots. I didn't feel like I could let my 11 year old out of my sight. 

I haven't been back since late summer. Thus, I haven't been keeping up on what's new, although much of it is dregs.

However, thanks to blogs, I now know there is a new Catlett family novel out. I used my Bookshop credit to purchase it, because Wendell Berry would appreciate avoiding Amazon, and avoiding Amazon is another resolution.  This helps with my bigger goal of shopping less in general. We still need some things for the house - the basement and the sunroom remain sparsely furnished, but after Christmas, I need a break from shopping. I finally made all of my returns - almost every time buying something new, unfortunately. The cure is to not go into the shops at all. 

In addition to resolutions to shop less and to read real books and real news more, I'm of course telling myself to eat less, exercise more, worry less, sleep more, write more, pray more, and connect with family and friends more. 

I just need more hours in the day and more will power! Or more grace...

I know I make the same resolutions every year, and I know that I rarely keep them - or I wouldn't have to recommit. I don't even need to look back at last year's resolutions, as I used to sometimes do, because they are always about the same. Nonetheless, I will continue to appreciate the habit of using this time of year to do an examination of conscience for the year - which reminds me that I also need to get to confession. I meant to go the other day, but the line was too long! This was an issue in Texas, too. A good thing for the church, a bad thing for my soul.

So here's to starting over and trying again to be the person we are called to be! And oh, happy failures that remind us of our need to be redeemed! And to the hope that springs anew even in the bleak midwinter that by grace we will someday have that glory.