Wise Blood

My personal, political, practical and occasionally peculiar view of the world.

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Each Day As God's Gift

Each Day As God’s Gift

On Palm Sunday when we were kids, it was the custom (as we exited the church building after services) for an usher to give each of us a small palm branch to carry home. It was an odd thing, meant (I suppose) to commemorate Jesus entering Jerusalem while riding a donkey. John 12:13 tells us “they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him” and they acknowledged Jesus as “the king of…

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Warren Who?

“Warren Piece.” I distinctly recall my mother uttering those two words as she ushered me out the door with my brothers on our summer afternoon trek to the library. Our visits to the public library were a regular occurrence in those days, and on occasion, we walked the mile+ distance sans adult supervision. We had specific, unalterable instructions:  stay together, follow the usual route, be home…

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So Long, Farewell 2021

So Long, Farewell 2021

At the beginning of 2021, I posted a light verse poem titled Hello, 2021! It was an intentional way to dismiss from my recall the memories of 2020. I asked some specific questions in that post, but concluded “2021 may not be so different than 2020.” And here I am (on the final day of 2021) thinking I was something of a prophet. No, I won’t indulge in complaints (though I have many) nor discuss…

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Glory to God in the Highest!

Glory to God in the Highest!

It’s Christmas morning! Chart-topping pop singer Andy Williams (from a previous generation obviously) called it the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2019/11/28/12/58/christmas-4659102_1280.jpg Based on my earliest memories, I’ve viewed the day through the same lens as Andy Williams. It’s magical — a day of mystery (gift-giving and receiving)! It’s a day for love…

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Fifty-two Card Pickup

The rush of Christmas activities has been somewhat more fragmented this year due to my sister-in-law’s sudden passing. In fact, it wasn’t until my Beloved and I were halfway through “our day” that both of us realized, “Hey, today’s our 52nd anniversary!” Through the years since our wedding in 1969, we’ve observed some with splashy celebrations while others have been quite subdued. When you have…

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It Is Well With My Soul

It Is Well With My Soul

Eleven days ago, my lifelong friend and sister-in-law entered into her eternal rest. She was so dear to so many … family, friends, colleagues and numerous students who sat under her excellent tutelage and received personalized instruction. Her sudden departure from this world stunned and pressed us to contemplate our own mortality. Terri and I first met in junior high school and through the…

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A Day Like None Other

A Day Like None Other

Resurrection Day was a day like none other in the history of mankind! John 20 tells us: “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.” The heavy stone which had been covering the entrance was rolled aside! The crucified Jesus was no longer buried within! Image by Gerd Altmann from…

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The 15-Day Year

Remember 2020? It was March 11, 2020 when all the purported experts instructed people (all over the globe) that we needed “15 days to slow the spread.“ That 15 days turned into a month … and then six weeks … and here we are (a year later) still laboring through various “baby steps”  in hopes of recovering some semblance of normalcy. Image by Frauke Riether from Pixabay Does it seem like it’s been…

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Behold, The Rose

The old saying “Beauty is as beauty does” was a phrase my mother used often when I was a child. Naturally, she desired to impress upon me the maxim that outer beauty is mostly irrelevant (or worthless) if there’s no inner beauty. In my teens, I might have offered this observation about the rose. It doesn’t do anything. A rose is beautiful simply because it is. Image by Bessi from Pixabay Today,…

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Happy Birthday, My Beloved!

Happy Birthday, My Beloved!

Today, March 1st, is a special day we’re celebrating at our house. It is my dear Beloved’s birthday. He is my best friend, a mentor, and my respected spiritual leader. It’s almost impossible for me to recall a time when he wasn’t part of my life. Even before I knew him, I knew the kind of man I hoped (and prayed) my husband would be … and when I met him, I knew he was the one I’d been waiting…

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The Devil Made Me Do It!

The Devil Made Me Do It!

Black History Month for 2021 ends today. I had been thinking about a comedian, Flip Wilson, who was the first African-American to host a successful ’70s-era variety show on television. Though he died in 1998, one of Wilson’s standard routines was built around the statement:  the devil made me do it! The 5-minute 1970 video (below) from the Ed Sullivan Show provides a taste of Wilson’s…

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Anyone Can Blog

Almost eleven years ago, I began the Wiseblooding blog with my younger daughter’s encouragement. If you’ve been on the internet at least a week or two, you know anyone can “publish” a blog. Figures differ on the total number of blogs worldwide (500 million? 600 million? More? Less? Honestly, who can say for certain?) Did I mention, anyone can blog? Image by Firmbee from Pixabay Interestingly,…

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What Is Love?

Who can explain love? L-O-V-E … Is love that junior high twitter-pation you experience when sitting across the lunch table from him/her? Is it that crazy weak-kneed feeling you get while dancing with your prom date? Or maybe the head-spinning breathlessness on your wedding day as you gaze down the aisle into the eyes of your future spouse? Maybe it’s all the above? Or none of the above? What is…

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Here I Am

The sleep disorder, insomnia, afflicts (according to some resources) about one-third of the adult population. Considering the number of prime-time advertisements for drugs to combat the condition, insomnia is difficult and stressful. Some people find relief; others are less successful. For many, the illustration below tells the whole grim story:  Here I Am! As I’ve gotten older, I’ve experienced…

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A Trip To Mars

A Trip To Mars

There’s a curious film I recently discovered on the Internet Archive. It’s a silent Danish film from 1918 entitled A Trip to Mars. (The original title was Himmelskibet.) Ten years ahead of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon, A Trip to Mars captured the imagination of early 20th-century earthbound film-makers and viewers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Trip_to_Mars Given the founding of the private…

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The Strength of Our Nation

The Strength of Our Nation

The month of February has been designated annually (since 1976) as Black History Month in the United States. In his proclamation address announcing the designation, President Ronald Reagan noted: “understanding the history of Black Americans is a key to understanding the strength of our nation.” Indeed. In 2019, the Census Bureau estimated the Black population to be about 48 million individuals,…

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Brokenness

No matter where we live or what our stage in life, all of us have a common problem:  our world is broken. It’s easy to name the multiple ills that seem to overwhelm our 21st century earthbound reality. Just a small list will suffice here – poverty, war, hunger, racism, disease. Yes, there are ample reasons to declare:  life sucks. Image by enriquelopezgarre from Pixabay As individuals, we’re also…

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