Category: Culture

A Story Doesn’t Always Go the Way You Had in Mind: Thoughts on Faith and Suffering

~ Peggy Haslar ~ 2 Comments

My father passed away on Christmas Day. Even though he was 89, the hospital call informing us that he was "letting go" was a sad surprise: it wasn't his long struggles with COPD and atrial fibrillation or even the suspected prostate cancer worrying him that ultimately caused his death. A stone lurking invisibly in his … Continue reading A Story Doesn’t Always Go the Way You Had in Mind: Thoughts on Faith and Suffering

Favorite Reads of 2023: Four Unexpected Delights

~ Peggy Haslar

Calvin and Hobbes, Bill Watterson's beloved comic strip, once depicted Calvin in a philosophical stance, opining to his stuffed tiger that “today’s TV-reared audience is hip and sophisticated.” “This stuff doesn’t affect us,” the impish Calvin continues. “We can separate fact from fiction. We understand satire and irony. We’re detached and jaded viewers who aren’t … Continue reading Favorite Reads of 2023: Four Unexpected Delights

Books Before Newsbites: Curating the News with C.S. Lewis and Dorothy Day

~ Peggy Haslar

When it comes to news consumption, I mostly have two kinds of friends. The first backs away from any conversation about current events. “Oh, I don’t pay much attention to the news,” they say with a dismissive wave of the hand. “It’s too political for me.”  I know what they mean. Many of us are … Continue reading Books Before Newsbites: Curating the News with C.S. Lewis and Dorothy Day

Lesser Known Lightfoot: Glimpses of the Singer’s Spiritual Side

~ Peggy Haslar ~ 4 Comments

I’ve been humming Gordon Lightfoot tunes since his passing last month. I mean, a little more than usual.  My brothers and and I latched onto Gordon Lightfoot’s special genius as teenagers when visiting our mom’s side of the family in California the spring when Sundown topped the charts. We then learned that our beloved Uncle … Continue reading Lesser Known Lightfoot: Glimpses of the Singer’s Spiritual Side

“Go and Be Human” with Close Reads: A Podcast for the Incurable Reader

~ Peggy Haslar

When I was a young mother trying to finish a Bachelor of Arts in English, I relished my Tuesday evening class at the local college. The English department head, a kind woman with twinkling eyes and exacting standards, required us to read a book a week and come prepared to spend the first 30 minutes … Continue reading “Go and Be Human” with Close Reads: A Podcast for the Incurable Reader

Uncentered: How Adam and Eve Reveal the Truth about You, Me and the Middle Tree

~ Peggy Haslar ~ 2 Comments

I feel as if I've read the first three chapters of Genesis a zillion times. As a young adult I read the Bible through each year, starting with Genesis. Then I began following the lectionary, which leads us through the Scriptures every three years. That's a much more meditative pace, but Genesis 1-3 is so … Continue reading Uncentered: How Adam and Eve Reveal the Truth about You, Me and the Middle Tree

Fiction, News Addiction & The Genesis of Gender: Standouts from 2022’s Reading

~ Peggy Haslar ~ 2 Comments

“One year from now, you are likely to be much the same person except for the people you meet and the books you read.”  I don’t remember who told me this back when I was young but I never forgot it; it's helped me track my reading year after year ever since. Lately the Goodreads Reading … Continue reading Fiction, News Addiction & The Genesis of Gender: Standouts from 2022’s Reading

Why Peace is my Word of the Year

~ Peggy Haslar ~ 3 Comments

I’ve struggled with it. I sometimes suspect that the word peace is used to shush rightful responses to real harm. I’m tempted to think peace is for reality deniers. And besides, being a broken human, I certainly can’t live peace. Can I? This month as I pondered a word for the year, “peace” kept rising … Continue reading Why Peace is my Word of the Year

How to Offer Hope in Advent’s Exile

~ Peggy Haslar

When I speak to pretty much anyone these days, we share a litany of worries: rising prices, Covid variants, the nation’s angry political divide, “wars and rumors of wars.” “But there’s not much we can do about it,” a friend remarked the other day. “Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.” Truly … Continue reading How to Offer Hope in Advent’s Exile

25 Years after his Death, I Still Miss Rich Mullins

~ Peggy Haslar

A couple of weeks back, a friend in an online writing group I'm in gave us a quick haiku challenge. Mine wasn't perfect, but it was straight from the heart: When autumn leaves twirl/ Like cowgirl ballerinas/ I miss you, Rich Mullins. He died 25 years ago today. I've written about Rich Mullins' contribution to … Continue reading 25 Years after his Death, I Still Miss Rich Mullins