We were on a retreat in the rugged Ozark foothills — a day aside for prayer and reflection.
In one of our silent hours, I ventured into the pathless woods.
The woods have always …
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By Mark Saucier
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9/14/23
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The other day, we were watching a couple of our granddaughters.
Out of the blue, the 4-year-old informed me, “I don’t know why Grandpa, but I love you.”
I smile …
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By Mark Saucier
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8/31/23
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The Germans have a word for it. From the people who gave us schadenfreude for that pleasure we get from another’s failure, and zeitgeist for the spirit of the times, we get …
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By Mark Saucier
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8/16/23
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Recent congressional testimony of UFOs and alleged “non-human biologics” intrigued me.
I recalled a story which now may not be apocryphal after all.
Not that long ago, our …
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By Mark Saucier
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8/3/23
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We looked like an intergenerational field trip as we gathered at the trailhead.
Twenty of us, from a backpacked toddler to a couple of older dawdlers, were intent on tackling a hike that started …
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By Mark Saucier
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7/20/23
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In King Lear , it’s the fool Edgar who has the last word:
“The weight of this sad time we must obey,
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say.”
Behind the …
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By Mark Saucier
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7/6/23
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The disciples, desperate for something more tangible than homespun allegories, asked Jesus to teach them to pray.
I wonder what their reaction was when he gave them the “Our Father.”
…
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By Mark Saucier
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6/21/23
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The Hebrew Scriptures have many takes on aging and death.
There is the story of Enoch, the great grandfather of Noah, who “walked with God, and he was no longer here, for God took …
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By Mark Saucier
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6/7/23
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It’s the season of caps and gowns, big dreams and a beckoning future.
Commencement speakers are advising graduates to go for the gold, dig deep and change the world.
The diploma-ed …
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By Mark Saucier
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5/25/23
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When we were taking care of our daughter’s kids for a few days, one of the things we had to do was to take our grandson to Taekwondo practice.
I’ve been to a near-infinite number of …
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By Mark Saucier
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5/10/23
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When we were taking care of our daughter’s kids for a few days, one of the things we had to do was to take our grandson to Taekwondo practice.
I’ve been to a near-infinite number of …
more
By Mark Saucier
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5/10/23
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I had an appointment with my oncologist. I like him, but after five years, I’m ready to just run into him socially.
This was supposed to be when he released me, when he took me to the door …
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By Mark Saucier
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4/27/23
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A theologian I know is a bit of a provocateur — someone who will say some superficially radical things, just to get people to think more about their own experience.
After one of his talks, a …
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By Mark Saucier
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4/12/23
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Holy Week begins with an ironic scene.
An itinerant preacher from the countryside is placed on a donkey, lauded with palm branches and hosana-ed by the crowd as their conquering king.
The …
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By Mark Saucier
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3/29/23
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Once a month, I meet a friend for breakfast. We’ve only known each other a few years, but there was an immediate bond that has deepened with time.
We talk about news, sports, families, but …
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By Mark Saucier
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3/16/23
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When I was a kid, Lent was the time for talk about sin.
Perhaps it was in their teaching contract, but the good nuns invariably told us, in their own veiled words, about the seven …
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By Mark Saucier
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3/2/23
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I caught the news before bed — a 7.8 earthquake rocked parts of Tukey and Syria.
Headlines are filled with once-frightening words of epic storms, tornadoes, hurricanes and tsunamis. What …
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By Mark Saucier
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2/15/23
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It was another silly question popping up in a wandering conversation.
“What superpower would you like to have?”
Avoiding the selfish fun things like invisibility or telepathy, it …
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By Mark Saucier
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2/1/23
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It was a greedy, aggressive cancer.
Not content to feast on his lungs, it metastasized, seeking total conquest of his body.
It seemed to win. We had his funeral yesterday: a royal …
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By Mark Saucier
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1/19/23
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As many as 45% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions.
As few as 8% keep them. (Most of these are skinny, self-driven perfectionists.)
The past two years, the most popular (and …
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By Mark Saucier
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1/5/23
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