The Direction of Heart and Mind
Albert Camus is absurd. Okay, that’s not really a fair assessment. I didn’t know Albert Camus. He died before I was born. Even if he were alive today, in the Venn Diagram of the total population, I doubt Mr. Camus…
Essays
The Convergence of Growth and Comfort
For many people, the picture above likely conjures thoughts of an idyllic vacation: white, sandy beaches; azure water; a light breeze; drinks by the ocean. Perfection. Right? While I haven’t been to a lot of places like the one pictured…
The Whispers of Gratitude
I sat on the floor for 30 minutes, trying to convince myself to go for a run. I typed out a text to my running group, letting them know I would see them in a week. . .or a month…
The Strokes of Daily Effort
Lately, I identify as a procrastinator. Most mornings, I wake up and spend far too much time scrolling through social media feeds when I could be exercising, reading a book, working, or sleeping. A little more sleep would be nice…
How to Make Room for Life’s Quieter Moments
I rolled over to the sound of my youngest child entering my bedroom. 3:12 am. “Can I sleep there?” He asked me in a hushed tone, careful not to disturb my wife. He just turned nine, and he’s one of…
The Tyranny of the Urgent
Only a few days ago, I hired a new employee. In her review at the end of her first week, I related that my professional life has been governed by chaos. Like so many, for years I’ve worn my “busyness”…
The Need to Understand that Every Story Is Incomplete
If you are old enough to remember the 1980s, you’ll probably remember the choose your own adventure books that were popular during that decade. The idea was simple: a book would have multiple paths that led to different endings. As…
Embracing Humanity’s Inherent Worth
At the end of World War II, a young man named Boyd Packer was stationed in Japan. In a war-torn country, this young man’s experience was not likely unique, but his own observations about the experience are what captured my…
Don’t Sit and Stew. Go and Do.
There’s a story of a young man tasked with something that seemed impossible: build a ship large enough to carry his family across unfamiliar water, a voyage that would take several months to complete. The young man had a few…
Pockets of Freedom
My normal days begin at 4:00 am, and I’m often awake earlier than that. Several of my friends think I’m crazy. Considering I go to bed after 10:00 pm most nights, I don’t have much of a counter-argument to the…
When the Center Does Not Hold
There once was a farmer who felt unfairly treated by the manager of the irrigation district he belonged to; that he hadn’t been given his due. The man became angry to the point of distraction over the perceived unfairness. One…
Perspective and Narrative
Once a week, my wife and our older children are involved in activities with a youth group from our church. Our youngest and I stay home and we have “party night.” He’s young, so party night typically consists of a…
5 Lessons from Running 1,400 Miles
From where I live, it’s 1,408 miles to Homewood, IL, population 19,000. In 2023, that’s the distance my legs have carried me. From home to Homewood. I’ve reflected more than once during some very difficult runs on an out-of-context passage…
Who Are You When There’s Nobody to Impress?
We’ve all been there — sitting in a group of people with whom we have little in common. We tell ourselves stories about their expectations of who we should be . It doesn’t matter if anyone echoes our stories out…
We Are Made to Change
I walked slowly across the front lawn of my parents’ home holding my wife’s hand. For an August afternoon, the temperature was a bit cooler than usual. Our kids, in age order (coincidentally), made their way into the house ahead…
