Magical Memoir Moments
What I Learned from Julia Spicher Kasdorf’s Mother
Virginia was terribly chagrined that she forgot to bring flowers, her intended house warming present, the day we went to lunch together. I laughed and told her to surprise one of her new neighbors, since she lives 20 minutes away and she is even newer to Lancaster County retirement community living than we are. But,…
Location, Location, Location: Choosing It and then Exploring it
Q: What are the three most important things about choosing a new home? A: Location, location, location. Why did we choose Warwick Woodlands? There are, after all, dozens of other retirement communities in Lancaster County, PA. In 2018, in fact, U.S. News & World Report ranked Lancaster County as the #1 retirement destination in the…
One is Silver and the Other Gold: Making Friends after 70
When I was about five years old and discouraged about some relationship with another child, I asked my parents how to make a friend. My parents were both young, in their twenties, but on this subject they were wise beyond their years. “To make a friend, be a friend.” Did my mother say it, or…
Porch Culture: Where Architecture and Hospitality Meet
A few mornings ago, I stepped out my front door here in Warwick Woodlands, and there was neighbor Donna talking to neighbor Anna over the porch railing. Just the sight of them gave me a pleasant little frizzon — that “electric feeling behind the navel” that informs me that something profound is speaking to me….
From This Valley They Say We Are Going: Another Turning Point
A few days ago I wrote about the long, cold winter our family has endured. This week new life has erupted. Daffodils are budding, and the early ones are dancing in the breeze. This beautiful passage from the second chapter of the Song of Solomon speaks for us: “Arise, my love, my fair…
So Much Fun: Making Collage Photos and Getting Chills
A few weeks ago everyone seemed to be playing with FaceApp, which aged faces of young people. You could see yourself in the future, say, fifty years from now. On our second honeymoon to Nova Scotia, we did the reverse. These collages were much fun to make. They were taken almost exactly fifty years…
Our Callings, Our Bodies, and Our Lodestar Books
Do you have a lodestar book? One that explains your self to yourself? One that you can read in any season of life and it still instructs, comforts, and inspires you? Like this one? I have read this book at least four times. I come back to some passages nearly every year. This novel tells…
Purging and Pruning Post Epiphany
Yesterday, the Day of Epiphany, fell on a Sunday, and a little group from our church jumped into conversation about the wise men, the star, and global warming, in response to the sermon. So, I was receptive when my friend Richard posted a wonderful epiphany reflection, which begins this way: For this Time Being –…
The Celestial Openness of the Child’s Mind: Lydia’s Breakthrough, Our Goodbye
Those Romantic poets, especially Wordsworth, got it right. We do arrive on this earth trailing clouds of glory! For the last eleven months, Stuart and I have had a front-row seat as Lydia exuberantly shared with us the trailing clouds of glory she brought with her from birth. Today neuroscientists are using the term “celestial…
Baby Songs: “You’re Gonna Thank Me Everyday”
Did you have a record player in your house long ago? This record player came from an estate sale, the first one Nik and Kate went to several years ago. The price was $150. That number seemed high. It’s probably about as much as the original cost in the late 1950s or early 60s. They…