Uphill idealist

I can't tell you how many times I've thought about the following quote by Dr. M.L. King... "I have a dream that my four little children will oneday live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skinbut by the content of their character." When I was in sixth grade I was chosen to recite this well-known quote in for a musical that we were performing at my school called, "Kids for America". While I was excited about the singing and dancing and having a chance to have a speaking part in the play, this quote rattle around my young mind in a way that no other words had before. I grew up in a tiny town in western Pennsylvania and the community was lily white. There was no racial diversity to see or speak of. The only significant differences I recognized were religious ones, and this only happened because the kids who were Catholic were dismissed early on Fridays so they could attend  Catechism Class. From my perspective I could not un...

Some days seem lined with words like, "Joy" and "Hope", but then there are the days that surround us with calls, conversations, and unspoken chats that long for "Mitleid-Help". Mitleid- Help for what is going wrong. Mitleid-Help to meet an impossible deadline. Mitleid-Help from ears to hear the story we long to tell. Mitleid-Help to share in when things get a little crazy. The call for "Mitleid-Help" does more than ask for our time and energy. These calls ask for who we are to show up, to stand up and give ourselves to the other. This is not pity, for pity only makes the distance between people grow. These calls are not one sided. They are reciprocal. They are not demands. "Mitleid-Help" is a request to be with the other - and the other to be with us. Mitleid-Help for me. Mitleid- Help for you. Help is the "Mitleid" - the compassion, that brings us together so that all can be held secure, no matter how craz...

This a photo of my friend Pat Moser who created amazing pumpkin sculptures for years in spite of living with MS. (To view more of his "Grumpkins" click here .) Pat lived life in "Joy!" and challenged so many others to joyful living as well.  Just after I shared Pat's philosophy of "Joy" on Sunday morning, I came across a reusable cup at Starbucks that was for sale. It simply said the word, "JOY". While "JOY" is not something that erases the difficulty of life, it is something to carry (like my cup) to all aspects of living. "JOY" is, to me, the freedom to live knowing that God is always with me, understanding me, and patient with me in my failings. Living in "JOY" allows me to move into the sadness and grief that is a part of life -  Because I'm not alone in it. (Or are you.) While Pat passed away in 2010, his challenge to living in "JOY" remains today and every day. For all the challeng...