Zucchini bread is baking in the oven (only because it rained this morning and it's not 90 degrees inside the house) and chai is steaming out of a china cup. And I'm writing. Perhaps the quintessential afternoon for any quiet homebody. But outside, the world feels so violent and hostile. So virulent, capricious, volatile. More…
#100
It feels appropriate that the 100th post on this blog should be the one before us: news and philosophical rabbit holes. But first, let's celebrate. 100. It's taken me a few years to get here (my very first post here was in 2019) which makes it even sweeter. Thank you to each of you who…
Come Along for the Ride
We’re in traffic somewhere in Veracruz. The sugar cane fields are being cut, burned and replanted. Van claims it’s 47 C outside. I believe it. It’s pretty toasty in here. According to X, a semi burst into flames a few kilometers up ahead so the highway is down to one lane. It’s a 12 hour…
Granma, Cuba
This post is not my story to tell. I am, instead, a privileged bystander and would like to invite you to join me here on the sidewalk. Nestled against the Sierra Maestra, the province Granma is a 16 hour bus ride away from Havana. Its forested peaks roll 2,000 meters above sea level for over…
On the Bookstand
Back in October, I did a Favorites post which turned out to basically just be a booklist. So, for the time being, I'm giving up trying to find favorites (my life is super boring and literally whatever my favorites were 6 months ago are the still the same ones today), and instead I'll give you…
Hymn List
Hello to everybody in 2024! How humbling that God is giving us another year to honor and glorify Him, to devote ourselves: body, soul and spirit to His good pleasure. As I did last year, I'm sharing the list of hymns we sang as a family throughout 2023. There are fewer hymns than weeks in the…
Death is a Promise
Death is a PromiseThat there is another side. The Earnest of Eternity;A slim channel betweentoday and Tomorrow. Death is a PromiseThat full Redemption still waits.The Great Price has been fully paid;A blood-soaked settlement.But Home is yet to come. Death is a Promise That there is another side. They walk through but leave us behindOur tears…
The Magical In-Between
It was our last night away. We wound up the mountains to the Maltrata Pass in Veracruz on our way to a hotel in Córdoba. It was very dark, though not late, and I felt my anxiety levels rise. Recent reports of hold-ups, highway robberies, on that very highway brought back a flood of memories.…
Spring and Summer Favorites
A few things I've enjoyed over the last several months: The Book World: Dangerous topic as this post covers summer which meant extra time for personal reading. A list will suffice: Moby Dick. If you don't know the Bible fairly well, this book will make no sense. The last lines about Rachel still weeping over…
On Miracles
In our cynical, western, enlightened minds, miracles are generally a thing of the past. Supernatural is almost synonymous with superstitious and indeed, the superstitious are often the ones looking out most keenly for the supernatural. As a realist, the facts are the facts. It is what it is. This is, admittedly, often to my detriment.…
penelope alves 