Some mottoes the Vicar is considering immortalizing in needlepoint for her study wall… Stop trying to fix everything. You’re not as important as you worry you are. It’s about you, but it’s not about you. – Marie Fortune God, please help me not to be such an ass. – Anne Lamott There […]
Suburban Vista – July 2013 
August 6, 2013 by
Restored prairie and Black-eye Susans with subdivision and storm clouds.
Blood on the Lawn 
July 30, 2013 by
We were walking along Parkside, Odo the Beagle and me, when all of a sudden he dove into a front lawn and baby bunnies went running everywhere. Except for the one in his month. It made a terrible tiny squeak. Meanwhile, I was still trying to figure out what was happening. Were these tiny things mice? […]
My Patch of Earth 
July 26, 2013 by
I’ve always wanted to tend a piece of ground. I remember Sarah in The Secret Garden, who moves to her uncle’s estate and is sort of lost – a little girl in the vastness of a lonely house. She asks him: “Might I have a bit of earth?” “Earth!” he repeated. “What do you mean?” “To […]
Solitude and Crowds in Orlando
July 16, 2013 by
We came to Florida on a two-day road trip last week with some dear friends for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) General Assembly, a biannual meeting of my husband’s entire denomination. Denominational assemblies are giant conventions. Instead of business people, dentists, or people in Star Wars costumes, you have a motley crew of church […]
Laryngitis as a Spiritual Discipline
July 2, 2013 by
I’ve barely spoken for the past four days. Who knew laryngitis could last this long? (It’s getting better, so no one should worry.) It’s also been a really fascinating experience. Ten days ago, I got a bad cold and was in bed for 3 days. I was well enough to preach and preside on Sunday, […]
Our Local Farm
June 20, 2013 by
Our weekly share of produce from Green Earth Institute farm. From the right: winter onions, salad turnips, spinach, snap peas, lettuce, tatsoi (an Asian green), and… a beagle. Green Earth Institute is just four miles from our house, in Naperville. It’s a 60-acre organic farm, complete with beautiful old stone farmhouse, and an island surrounded […]
Book Event Hijinks with Marianne Elliott
June 19, 2013 by
1. Only four of us showed up last night. And one was a rep from the publisher. This must get disappointing for authors. I went with Ruan, a friend and parishioner, who is also a writer and poet (her chapbook: “thought-fish“). We went to go hear Marianne Elliott, yoga teacher, human rights lawyer, and writer […]
Why I Can’t Bring Myself to Wear My Collar Into Target
June 12, 2013 by
This morning, I wrinkled my brow in the driver’s seat of my car, considered my options, and took off my clergy collar before walking into Target. I don’t wear a collar every day, but when I do, this is often a choice I have to make. Pumping gas, going into restaurants and stores, walking across […]
