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Thin Places

“Epistemology.” It’s one of those words I learned in Seminary and had to look up in the dictionary again and again because I always forgot its meaning. Basically, it’s the philosophical discipline devoted to answering a simple question: How do you know what you know? For instance, how do you know what a flower is?…

What do Nietzche, The New York Times, The Village Voice, Bono, and Christianity have in common? Well, they’ve all showed up in Tim Keller’s sermons over the years. Tim Keller, of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, is the best preacher I’ve ever heard. He tells great stories, weaving together Biblical texts with culturally…

There’s a recent trend in American consumerism, or lack thereof. According to “Purchase Power: Does It Make You Happy,” as people save more money and attempt to live with more simplicity: “New studies of consumption and happiness show, for instance, that people are happier when they spend money on experiences instead of material objects, when they…

We live next door to my paternal grandmother. Literally, next door. When I look out the kitchen window, I can usually tell where she is. If the blinds are drawn in her bedroom–she’s still asleep. If the light is on in the living room, I know she’s perched in her wing chair, cell phone and…

My brother Daniel was the kid who pooped in the public pool. He also was the cute Korean kid with spiky hair who made parents nervous because he was still screaming and splashing like a drowning person in the shallow end, even though he knew how to swim. You never would have known that it…

Story Number One: Despite the title of this post (and despite the picture, which corresponds to Story Number Two), I’m going to start with the bad and the ugly: It was last Thursday. I had Penny and William to myself for the day, and I woke up determined to be a fabulous mom. We would…

There are days when I am a practical atheist. On those days, I tend to be cranky. I want my kids to behave, and I lose patience with them easily. I fail to notice the beauty of my surroundings. I don’t say thank you very much. Those days feel flat. There are other days, I…

For better or for worse, I’ve gotten more and more used to the words “retard” and “retarded.” They don’t sting the way they used to. I know they are usually just careless and thoughtless, not intentional jibes at a group of human beings whose IQ is lower than average. But I still think it is…

My husband’s family is from New Orleans. He spent much of his childhood there, and most of his aunts, uncles, and cousins still call New Orleans home. I fell in love with the city after his mom became ill with cancer. We lived with her for a few months, and I stood in awe of…

I’ve been on vacation this week, which has given me ample time to read. Some articles of interest: “Rumor To Fact in Tales of Post-Katrina Violence” from the New York Times. I will be posting my own reflections on the 5-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina next week, but one thing a storm (literal or figurative)…
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