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Moments in Time: Dingle, Ireland
As many of us celebrated St. Patrick’s Day this week, we find ourselves on the Dingle Peninsula in the southwest part of Ireland. The town of Dingle is the largest town on the peninsula located in County Kerry. The magnificent road that winds around the peninsula is called Slea Head Drive. A little side note, the westernmost part of the peninsula not only brings a spectacularly beautiful view of the rough surf of the Atlantic. But the islands off to the west are the closest part of mainland Ireland that you can get to the United States. Nestled in the rock just off the road sits a statue of the…
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Moments in Time: Glen Coe, Scotland (Highlands)
The winds were overwhelming but calming. The periods of rain were drenching but refreshing. The brisk air cut through your skin but awakened the very breath of your life. Standing in its midst was somehow a confrontation with truth beyond the ability to explain with my senses. Quite simply, it was one of the most mystical experiences of my life. Glencoe is nestled in the Scottish Highlands. It is about 100 miles or so from Edinburgh. Suppose you leave from Edinburgh, as I did. In that case, you go through the lush greenery of the Scottish lowlands, passing many breathtaking lochs (lakes) and some picturesque towns. Stirling, for one, with…
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Moments in Time: Helena, MT
This week’s destination brings us to Helena, MT. Helena is the state capital of Montana and became known as the “Queen City of the Rockies” due to the boom of the 1864 gold strike. That said, what brings us to the beautiful city of Helena today, is baseball. Specifically, June 1996. We find ourselves at Kendrick Legion Field, at that time, home of the Milwaukee Brewers Rookie Ball Team. I was a skinny young 18-year-old, a boy, playing for the Great Falls Dodgers, the Rookie Ball Team for the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was the opening night of the Pioneer League, and we had a road series against the…
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“Shining Like The Sun”
There was a moment last week that gave me great pause. Standing in the middle of an outdoor shopping area watching people walk by, I was struck with a profound feeling of wonder. Blame it on the Covid-19 shut-in orders, blame it on not being out and about regularly in almost a year, blame it on sitting every day with my 4th-grade son teaching him. Still, there I was, engaging in an ordinary, mundane activity of heading to the store before a snow storm yet being swept away with feelings of wonder and awe. Namely, to be in the presence of others. What a gift. Standing still and watching people…
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Moments in Time: Worb, Switzerland
This week’s journey takes us to Worb, Switzerland….specifically to a particular bench that was one of my favorite places to sit and regain perspective. Worb is a small village southeast of the city of Bern. It was our home for 4 1/2 years while we lived in Switzerland. We loved it. We lived in a house that sat halfway up the “Worb Hill,” as we would often refer to it. Down the street sat the 13th century Worb Schloss, Worb Castle. We stayed in the converted stable of the NeuSchloss, or the New Castle of Worb. A quick side fun fact to the Neuschloss, the Von Grafienrieds family, has owned…
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Random Thoughts on my 43 Birthday
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A Fire of Hope
The light slowly and quietly breaks the dark condition of the horizon. The first glimpse of the sun gives energy to all those who see it, feel it. The canvas of colors instantly invites us into a renewal that we all know so well. For it is offered to us daily. A renewal of life. A revival of our hearts. A restoration of our souls. Peace. That being said, beyond the peace that we feel, there is a burning desire that smolders from within. A desire for starting anew. A desire to escape the past. A desire to take a step forward. A desire to breathe and be fully alive…
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Gift of Silence
Due to Covid-19, the world community has paused. Humanity has been forced to stop, allowing for a type of collective vulnerability that rarely, if not ever, has happened before. Through this joined experience, we have been forced to look at ourselves both individually and culturally in ways we might never have been able to do so during our times of “normalcy”. The first observation is one of sadness. Sadness for those who have died, usually alone, and for the families who have had to watch a loved one die from afar. Sadness for the millions who have lost their jobs and with that, their dignity, and now struggle to find…
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The Greatest Illusion
For the last few nights at the dinner table, we have been reading excerpts from the book The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy. I can’t recommend this book enough, whether you are 12, 22, 42, or 92 years old. This was the dialogue from the book that struck me the most last evening…a dialogue that took place as all four characters (boy, mole, fox, and horse) were standing lakeside watching the beautiful and peaceful swans pass by. “How do they look so together and perfect?” Asked the boy. “There’s a lot of frantic paddling going on beneath,” said the horse. “The greatest illusion,” said the mole,…
