Life was good: two kids, a career in academia, and a decade of walking with Jesus. Then a decision from my early teens threatened to ruin it all. It was disorienting to realize that being a “new creation” did not entirely erase the consequences of bad decisions from the past. Reality was forcing me to […]
I looked desperately at my husband and weakly uttered the phrase for what seemed like the hundredth time in the past several weeks, “You have to tell me that there will be a day when I wake up and I don’t feel like this.” During the Fall 2021 semester, I found myself in an unexpected, […]
I once had a pastor who asserted, “Confession is good for the soul but bad for the reputation!” At my age and stage of life (professor emeritus), my reputation, bad as it is, is of less and less consequence. So, in retrospect, I have a major confession. I confess that I put far too much […]
To survive in academia, it is required that a professor become a good manager of his or her time. Unfortunately, faculty are often asked to do more than they have time to do, and they become sorely tempted to drop “unnecessary” activities from their schedules, especially those that entail regular time commitments with no clear […]
“Mom!” he yelled, bursting into the room. “Cutie has a hole in her bottom!” “Son! That is completely inappropriate!” I snapped. “Plus, I asked not to be interrupted while taking this timed online quiz.” “It’s not like that, Mom! Something else!” He left the room and promptly returned with the cat, who had, in fact, […]
The summer of 2022 wasn’t going well. After avoiding Covid-19 for two years, my wife and I both came down with it on the first day of our vacation. We had to cancel plans to attend a friend’s wedding, which meant we needed to pay the non-refundable, full cost of a mountain retreat. We returned […]
Born in Caracas, Venezuela, I had no idea when I came to Kansas for college that I would become a citizen of the United States of America. My deep sense of gratitude and love for this country was keenly awakened the summer of 1984. Along with my Kansas-born wife and our two children, I spent […]
A pilgrimage is a unique experience. The pilgrim is not a wandering vagabond nor a nomad. “Not all who wander are lost,” says Tolkien. The pilgrim journeys with a purpose. My wife and I have had the opportunity to walk the Way of St James in Spain three times. A hostel along the way, Fuente […]
Compelled by the pandemic to switch to online teaching, many educators and students scrambled to survive. Sensing that students were stressed and anxious (I knew some struggled with mental health issues), I committed to showing grace to them. Of course, it’s always nice when they appreciate it. Unfortunately, a student demeaned my grace. In the […]
For a number of years, the University of Florida has offered a General Education Humanities course where students consider the question, “What is the Good Life?” They do this through close examination of relevant works of art, music, literature, history, religion, and philosophy. I teach music but have been asked to propose a new course […]
