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Having not posted anything by Mary Oliver in awhile, I wondered if she had any poetry related to Independence Day. A quick online search led me to a post on “Improvised Life: A Treasury of Inspiring Ideas.” Allegedly, a poem my wife has loved for years, first read…
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Last week we returned to St. Paul, Minnesota for the national speech and debate competition hosted at the University of Northwestern. While there, I got to spend some quiet time on the dual bench glider swings on the university’s small island, known for its Island Chapel (follow the…
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The end approaches. We’ve moved past counting the days; now we’re counting the hours. Another school year, my twenty-fifth to be exact, comes to a close. In the heat of wrapping up the year and managing life outside of the classroom, my wife (at my son, Theo’s leading)…
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As the school year winds down, time to be creative grows like the lengthening Spring days! However, I was not expecting to have a creative moment when I stepped into my colleague’s classroom to observe her Contemporary Literature and Creative Writing class right after lunch. I drifted to…
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We’ve created a false dilemma (aka the either-or fallacy): “Either you remain a child or you become an adult.” And in a time where adultescence has spread like an infectious disease, it seems fitting that we raise high the banner of adulthood and call these basement-dwelling game-playing job-quitting…
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On Valentine’s Day I became a grandfather. Our first grandson! My wife was blessed to be there to prepare for and help with the delivery, as well as provide extra support for the first week of Liam’s life. By late spring, I will be a grandfather twice over…
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When they closed the schools for two days due to the extreme cold that dropped temperatures below -10 degrees Fahrenheit (without the wind chill), I knew the creek would freeze. And just as expected, I knew my ten-year-old would want to venture out onto the frozen waters. It…
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Tonight I came home from work to the day-to-day needs that swarm me almost as soon as I open my car door. The younger boys want to head to Walmart; my middle son’s basketball practice begins at 5:30; my wife and daughter have their book group meeting this…
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All the world’s a stage,And all the men and women merely players:They have their exits and their entrances;And one man in his time plays many parts,His acts being seven ages. Jaques, from Shakespeare’s As You Like It, Act 2, Scene 7 Time. Shakespeare notes the Seven Ages of…
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Tennyson remains one of my favorite British poets. As this year winds down and the new year dawns, Tennyson’s bells ring loudly from the past into our present, ringing out hope for the future in something bigger than we can touch or see. Rather than waste your time…
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the deepening ground 