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Showing posts from December, 2020

Fourth Advent: Love and Peace

Are you scared about anything right now? There are lots of things you could choose to be scared about. I don't need to list them. Do I have my own list? Absolutely. I'm not engulfed in fear, but there are definitely moments when I think, "Ugh. I sure hope things work out okay because right now they don't look so great." Do you want to know something fascinating though? Everyone has a different fear list. I imagine if most people listed their top 20 fears for the future there'd be significant overlap, but many people would list them in different orders and even judge other people for the order they'd chosen. I was recently listening to someone talking about their fears, and later as I thought about it I had kind of a funny realization. "I think we're afraid of almost the exact opposite things." We had probably watched some of the same videos and seen the same graphs, and yet we came away with entirely different interpretations. We had read the...

Third Advent: Joy and Delight

 During the pandemic I started following some parenting pages on Instagram. One of them is called Dr. Becky at Home. There's a concept that she often teaches called "Two things are true." For example: "Two things are true. You're not allowed to play any more computer games, and you are allowed to feel mad about that." "Two things are true. You are allowed to be mad, and you're not allowed to hurt anyone or anything." "Two things are true. My kid is having a tantrum, and it doesn't mean I am doing something wrong." This framework extends to other relationships. "I'm allowed to say no to things, and people are allowed to be annoyed or disappointed that I said no." "I'm allowed to have opinions, and my husband is allowed to have different opinions." "It's okay to feel mad, and it's not okay to say mean things when I'm mad." And of course, this framework extends to many other things. ...

Second Advent: Messengers

One potential topic for this Sunday of Advent is the idea of messengers, just like John the Baptist was the messenger preparing the people for the coming of the Lord. I am grateful for the messengers of truth in my life. I am grateful for prophets. I am grateful for scriptures. I am grateful for spiritual thinkers and wise leaders. Sometimes, though, I want more complicated messages than they always deliver. I don't always want faith and repentance. I want exegesis and prophecy. But here's a problem -- there were other people who were interested in those topics: the Pharisees. And here's what John the Baptist said to them: 7 ¶ But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: 9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to rais...

Reflections on Good News Limericks in a Year of Bad News

Tonight, I just wrote my 50th limerick of the year. To be honest, I don't know why I even started writing them. I am certainly not the only person who writes limericks about the news, and I am certainly not the wittiest at it, either. (You know who you are.) But in July, I wrote a limerick about the comet NEOWISE. For some reason it just seemed like it deserved one. Then, I wondered, how long can I keep this up? And thus it began. I wasn't able to come up with them daily after the first few days, but I have still been able to post fairly consistently. Sometimes I was able to throw in references to pop culture and current events, but other times I felt lucky just to have the right number of syllables.  I tried to keep my limericks mostly apolitical. Occasionally I wrote about something somewhat related to politics (I tried to stick to news that people across the political spectrum would appreciate), but in general I tried to find topics that I thought everyone would be glad abo...

Good News Limericks in a Year of Bad News

Every cloud has a silver lining 77. February 20, 2026 Just wait until his father hears -- Malfoy's mascot for Chinese New Years! With a name like a horse, The puns slither in force. The joy's felt in lands far and near. https://www.the-independent.com/asia/china/chinese-new-year-draco-malfoy-harry-potter-b2921617.html?fbclid=IwdGRjcAQJp3ljbGNrBAmndmV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHuAIzrxRSv5iTZlTeS-tzudTj_isaHYyHQa8DA6NFgzqXnm7rZOpag-FNaru_aem_DwjPZksXfMCbeDZpMRr4Cg 76. February 18, 2026 The prayers for snow, frequently voiced, Have been heard, and outside sure is moist. The driving's a drag Since the traffic will lag, But, once home, all have rejoiced. 75. April 10, 2025 A plane full of phones? It sounds heavy. Its airplane mode: skipping a levy. With doors shut securely  You can't call me, Shirley. For iPhone this works, but not Chevy. https://www.snopes.com/news/2025/04/10/apple-tariffs-china-india/?fbclid=IwdGRjcAQJpy1jbGNrBAmnKWV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNyd...