The Branch—January 11, 2021
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Rustlings (January 4, 2021)
I did a thing today. It’s certainly not the first time I’ve done ‘this thing,’ but it’s the first time with this specific intentionality. (Was that convoluted enough?) I walked through the Sanctuary today. That’s it. I walked through the Sanctuary—up and down every aisle and across the breadth of the balcony. I’ve walked these […]
The Branch—January 4, 2021
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Rustlings (December 21, 2020)
It always arrived in late Autumn. By mid-December it was tattered, creased, marked-up and mangled. In our home, it was a shared treasure among four children. We placed our initials throughout its pages—SD, DD, JD, FD—signifying the items each child hoped to find beneath the tree on Christmas morning. The Sears Wishbook was a tangible […]
Distance Bridges (December 14, 2020)
The length of a football field… A city block… Humans love to measure distance by referring to familiar spaces. If 2020 had its own unit of distance, it would naturally be the “6-foot social distance”—as in, “Wow! Can you believe we were only ten social-distances away from that bear?” or “Honey, I’m going to be […]
The Branch—December 14, 2020
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The Branch—December 7, 2020
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Rustlings (December 7, 2020)
Alex Trevino and his family lived a few blocks from my house—the halfway point between my home and our elementary school. Each school day morning he would wait on his corner and join the parade of Mabry Street students already meandering toward the campus. Alex immigrated to the United States from Mexico. We morning walkers […]
The Branch—November 30, 2020
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Rustlings (November 23, 2020)
Green and red are the primary colors of the Christmas season. Burl Ives might have disagreed—arguing silver and gold. For today’s literary purposes, however, I’m going to land on green and red. This Sunday, November 29, is the First Sunday of Advent. It is also the traditional time for our Hanging of the Green service. […]