Mostly, my photographs are organized by year first, then location, then date. It works pretty well. But I have a couple of folders for special purposes, and this is the title photo for the “What’s Saving Her Life Right Now” folder. I don’t know why the sky is what saves my life, but all of the photos in the “What’s Saving Her Life Right Now” folder are sky photos. Many of them are gorgeously colorful sunsets or sunrises, of course. But some of my faves, like this one that inspired the folder, feature a more subtle pallet: shades of blue,…

Back in the late 80s, a restaurant near the campus of the University of Pennsylvania featured a fountain in the middle of the dining room. I wrote–in longhand–most of my Master’s thesis there. I’d wait until the lunch rush was over, then get a table near the fountain, order black coffee and maybe a snack to justify my presence, then sit and write–for hours, until the dinner rush began. I’m still grateful that I was never made to feel like a nuisance. The wait staff cheerfully refilled my cup and management left me alone. The sound of tumbling water was…

How? I should spend all of Advent in the woods or in the swamp or maybe even just in my backyard. Or some combination thereof. Why? I know how to prepare for a class or a lecture. I know that when I’m about to lead worship or teach a class or go to sleep, I need and have developed rituals of preparation. But in Advent, “prepare” takes on larger meaning. How might I, and we, prepare for the coming of Divine Love? First, let’s remember that God is–and was–already here. Incarnation is not limited to the birth of Jesus–although that…