September 1, 2026 (journal entry) Mom’s become known by her new neighbors as the “Puzzle Lady.” Over the last month, she’s spent many hours in the lobby of her assisted living community working jigsaw puzzles, one after another. One morning last week, I pushed her wheelchair out to the half-completed puzzle of ice cream desserts and candies (not her favorite puzzle picture). For the next 45 minutes, we sat and worked together, finding pieces that sometimes fit, but more ofte

New Blog Post An Aversion to Sadness Posted by beth4277, 3 A few days ago, I found myself distracted by a question that we frequently ask when offering the Spiritual Location Exercise to spiritual direction clients and retreatants: “What are your prevailing emotions?” The question was rhetorical. I already knew the answer. Sadness. I felt sad. So sad that I couldn’t read or think about anything else. So I did what I often do. I created a mind map that helped capture the topog

A few days ago, I found myself distracted by a question that we frequently ask when offering the Spiritual Location Exercise to spiritual direction clients and retreatants: “What are your prevailing emotions?” The question was rhetorical. I already knew the answer. Sadness. I felt sad. So sad that I couldn’t read or think about anything else. So I did what I often do. I created a mind map that helped capture the topography of my sadness. I wrote previously about the events

This is our 6th year taking a July sabbatical from our work. In anticipation of the time, I imagined myself sitting for long hours on the dock at the Lily Pad (our tiny cabin in SW Michigan), or on chilly mornings snuggled under an electric blanket on the screened porch, reading and reflecting deeply about life. Little did I know that my bucolic visions would not become reality. On July 5th, just before we were to head to Traverse City, MI, to meet our daughters for

For several years, I worked as a contract consultant for an organization created and funded by the Lilly Endowment. During a staff meeting one day, we discussed the interfaith and ecumenical nature of our work. The President asked us if we knew why the Endowment emphasized a commitment to this scope. I’m guessing we all thought it was because religious pluralism was a value. Tim surprised us when he said, “No. It’s because the Lilly family believes that hospitality is a disti

True confessions. I have a strong proclivity for order. No matter where I am or who I am with, I naturally (and sometimes compulsively) seek to create or recreate order. I suppose I come by it naturally. I learned order from my orderly mother. I’m a “J” on the Myers-Briggs, i.e., someone who prefers structure and order. I raised four children who were less than six years apart. Establishing order was a necessity in our lively household! Even so, I still get lots of things o