My tutor looked away from the math problem to the sidewalk outside. I squinted, watching boys and girls walking hand in hand. White children were walking next to black children. The tutor made it clear that she did not approve of whites and blacks walking together. Mom had arranged for her, a retired school teacher, …
I made sure I had on my special socks—white with red trim, and my OU sweatshirt, T-shirt, and ball cap. Then, we raised our hands for the kick-off as we chanted “OOOO-U!” My son, Dave, and I are apt to repeat “First-down, first-down, first down,” when OU is in a tight spot on offense, or …
Stepping outside onto our back patio, the frigid early morning air startles me, smacking my cheeks like a trainer popping the face of a prizefighter, making sure the boxer is fully conscious. Moments before I had been inside, listening to the news reports: the murders in San Bernardino, CA., were likely the result of a …
After Mass, the nun ever so gently placed the remaining consecrated bread (the “Blessed Sacrament”) in the tabernacle—a wood carved, locked box, beautiful in its simplicity. I watched her precise and meticulous movements as she focused her complete attention on the placement of the bread: first she unlatched the door of the tabernacle, carefully positioned …
You’ve probably experienced something like it, even though you may not have been able to articulate what it was or is in your life. It’s that feeling you have when you no longer have feeling. You know you don’t have it any more. And you can’t seem to care that you don’t care. But the …