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Everyday Spirituality

The famous “bell graph” comes to mind when I’m breaking down misconceptions and stereotypes. The graph line starts low, rises, peaks, tapers off, and ends low. At the low points are extremes. There are extreme thinkers inside as well as outside faith circles. Extreme thinkers have thought patterns that include an ideology that their way…

Advancing past the psychology or religion used to terrorize others, terror can be broken down more effectively. When I got to know E and H, Muslims who manage the Tulip & Rose Café, we didn’t compare and contrast human thoughts or religions. We certainly didn’t excuse human thoughts or religions or blow them off as…

I’m a person who keeps up on the general news. The headlines, full of “terrorist” talk connected to Islam, has conjured the image that terrorists are Islamic, or Muslims who follow Islam. We know this isn’t true. Terrorists can be of many faiths, or no faith at all. Here in America, non-Islamic terrors are the…

The global trend of Islamophobia is not very pretty. I don’t want to wear it. I don’t want it in my house. I don’t want it in my consciousness, but hints of it float around in my head and I need to deal with it. I decided that one way to deal with it was…

Magic School Bus version of Jingle Bells: Metal here, bottles there Sort them in the bins Broiler pans and soda cans Just throw them all right in Hey! Plastic jugs, margarine tubs Pretty soon you’ll know What goes into a magic bus Ready? Here we go! So melt that metal down Pour it in the…

My neighbor believes human beings only have two real desires. To love and to be loved. “There is no fear in pure love,” he said. “It’s unconditional, but human beings are not capable of unconditional love.” He calls his ideal of pure love, God. His statement that humans are incapable of unconditional love was interesting.…

When in the second grade, my concept of family included me, Mom, Dad, two brothers, and one sister. At the end of the year, another sister entered the pictured. As I matured, so did my concept of family. It reached out to grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. After getting married, family blossomed. My concept of…

I’m not very sporty. You probably wouldn’t want me on your baseball team, unless it was to keep score or serve water. I can’t catch or throw a ball, really. Certainly not dependably. When I do catch something thrown at me, I’m flabbergasted, almost thrilled to know it’s possible. To catch a ball is to…

After cleaning the house, shoveling snow off the driveway, and driving to town to cover the Beautification Committee meeting for a newspaper article, I receive a call. “Can you get to the school to interview the Superintendent about Common Core testing in the classroom?” I check the time, do some mental math, and answer, “Okay.”…

After asking a lady a question, she started to answer then stopped and said, “Oh my, I just went brain dead. I can’t think of the word I want.” I said, “That happens to me all the time,” not to compete with her but to assure her I was fine waiting until she found the…
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