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For several summers I have tended the Madison School garden. The garden softens all that brick, concrete, and the asphalt play area and also serves as a welcome to kids who walk the sidewalk toward the building. The garden is a metaphor for renewal a…
It’s edgy riding a mountain bike trail in the deep dark forest with only the bike’s handle-bar-mounted headlight pushing its single beam through the nighttime darkness. Edgy for the rider whose eyes are straining to follow the never straight but alwa…
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Art by Sheila Mesick, given to raise money for clean water in Tanzania. One task I remember my grandmother attending to each morning was lifting up the window shades. The sunshi…
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This fall marked the passing of U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings. Rep. Cummings was born a poor black son of sharecroppers in 1951, who went on to become an attorney and politician. Starting at age 11, he dedicated himself to desegregation and civil rights….
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As a young boy, I dreaded going to bed. My imagination ran wild as I laid in bed conjuring up when and how the monster under my bed or in the closet would strike next. The darkness paralyzed me with fear. By morning, with the sun’s magnificent streng…
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On this national football holiday, it’s hard to know which will get passed more often, the turkey or the pigskin. But somewhere along the course of the day, and the games, it’s almost certain that someone will invoke the time-honored maxim: no pain –…
On Friday, Nov. 22, St. Paul high school students will start their day with a hearty breakfast. Then, they will not eat again until mid-afternoon on Saturday. The 30-hour famine is an effort to learn about hunger throughout the world, and experience,…
My daughter Maggie is two and attends preschool at St. Paul three days a week. Picking her up one day recently, I asked her teachers what some of her favorite activities are at school. To my surprise, they said she is loving art: painting, coloring,…
Gratitude. Groceries. Reunion. Stock a paper bag with nonperishable food items and toiletries and bring it to worship on Thanksgiving Eve, Nov. 27, or the weekend after, Nov. 30-Dec. 1. The food goes to the Friendly House Food Pantry in Davenport, an…
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A conversation with a Jewish scholar of early Christianity, entitled “You help me to know me – An interfaith insight,” will be Monday, Nov. 18, 7 p.m., at St. Paul. The presentation is free and open to the public. Marcie Lenk trained at both Yeshiva…
“Let the waters swarm with fish and other life. Let the skies be filled with birds of every kind.” Genesis 1:20-23 Margaret and I enjoy the beauty and diversity of God’s creation. Bird watching is one of the ways for us to experience nature and the b…
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Just last weekend I went to a dinner event with my family and one of the hosts inquired of me, “You work at St. Paul?” and then added, “it’s such a lovely facility.” In the short time since I started serving here, I’ve heard this compliment often. I…