Daffodils Defeat Darkness

Around here, people regularly recommend that heading over to the Filoli Gardens in Springtime—In the meadow there, there are literally millions of daffodils, all yellow and white—and a path that allows you to walk through them. The trees are in bloom with pink blossoms. Sunshine, birds, bees and gentle breezes. It is like the celebration…

A Holiday Trifecta: Mother’s Day, Hanukkah, & Easter

Yesterday, I went to the grocery store and could barely make it in the door because of the profusion of flower bouquets, potted plants, balloons, stuffed animals and chocolate covered strawberries that filled the front section of the store, waiting for those who wanted to celebrate their mothers to come and buy.  As I was…

This is the Night

Alleluia! Tonight more than any night we know some deep truths. Life is stronger than death. Light is stronger than darkness. Love is stronger than hate. The hard part is that the world often has a warped view of love. We make it about words that aren’t followed with actions. We make it about how…

Roller Coaster People: Come to the Carousel

Palm Sunday has got to be my absolutely least favorite day in Holy Week. We start with a parade, like a circus, with people waving palms. We get miracles like Jesus being placed on the back of an unbroken colt and he was not bucked off. People are waving palms leaves and yelling, Hosanna, Hosanna…

The Mystery of Easter

Where joy and courage come together we will be able to share the Good News of Easter.

In Defense of ‘Doubting’ Thomas

Have you ever heard anyone say “Don’t be such a doubting Thomas!”? It’s a phrase that has come to refer to anyone who is skeptical, anyone who demands concrete proof and direct personal experience as a condition for belief. Of course, that saying developed based on this passage of the Gospel that we heard this…

Guess How Much God Loves You

Anyone who has ever known a kid has had the experience of reading the same story over and over and over again. And then reading it a few hundred more times. This is a story book that was a favorite of both my daughters. I read it about a million times. It’s called Guess How…

The Hunt for Easter

Nearly every year, I find myself standing with a bunch of other parents partaking in a familiar Easter ritual—the Easter egg hunt. We wait while the children are split into age groups and then for the organizers to give the signal that starts the search. It got me to thinking about my older daughter’s first…