Gaining a heart of wisdom
I've spent the past week reconnecting with my sister. She lives in Alaska. I live in Maine. She has one grown daughter, while I've spent the past 23 years living in a boys' dormitory. She has lovely nails and her wardrobe demonstrates an awareness of the comings and goings of style. My hands and my… Continue reading Stepping onto the Common Ground — Jayber Crow Discussion Group (5)
He shows up every Sunday morning with a big smile and a small canvas bag full of candy. Swarms of children greet his arrival with joy, but it's his warm handshake and sincere delight in their lives that keeps those relationships alive as the kids become teens and then move on to adulthood. She is… Continue reading The Membership: Jayber Crow Discussion Group(4)
The geese have already begun their practice maneuvers over our heads on this country hill. They're getting ready to go, so at least one goofy son will have asked the annual joke question: "Why is one side of the V longer than the other?" Pause and grin. The answer? "One side of the V is longer than the… Continue reading Musings — September 2017
As I write today, Houston is well into the long rebuilding that follows a hurricane and flooding, and Irma has raged through the Caribbean islands and through Florida, leaving a wake of destruction and death. In an odd sort of coincidence, those of us who are reading Jayber Crow according to the schedule have been… Continue reading Like the Sound of Many Waters — Jayber Crow Discussion (3)
My faith unraveled at a Christian college. I know that’s not the way it’s supposed to happen, and I can remember wishing that a hostile, atheistic professor had bludgeoned me into my doubts with brilliantly irrefutable arguments. It would make for a much better story. Instead, the truth is I just got numb. The constant barrage… Continue reading 3 Stories Completely Ended: Jayber Crow Discussion Group (2)
The house where I grew up is gone, and I haven't returned to pay homage to the empty space. For me, home -- the place of belonging and permanence -- is this country hill which has created in me a deep appreciation and understanding of the importance of place. Expecting to live solitary and transient,… Continue reading Jayber Crow: Welcome to the Discussion!
Loon call trills through the open window just as the rain begins to fall. I leave the sash thrown wide because, I ask you, who could close a window on a song like that? And as summer draws to a close, I am reluctant to close the window on a season that has been so… Continue reading Musings — August 2017
Sometimes fictional theologians utter such delightful truths that I have to remind myself as I am reading, "He's not a real person. He doesn't exist outside this book." Jayber Crow is just such a man, stalwart resident and barber in Wendell Berry's fictional town of Port William, Kentucky. I love his thoughtful, meandering reflections on… Continue reading Just One Thing: Scorn
Living Our Days 