Dear Dad,
It’s African American History Month, and I’ve been thinking about our family history in the Deep South during the 1950s. We moved there from Southern California in the early 1950s. Total culture shock for me. I wonder what it was like for you.
I never knew you as anything but my father the ordained clergyman. Read the rest of this entry »
Here’s a meditation on one of my favorite Psalms, only 3 verses long, and one of my everyday challenges as a blogger.
Psalm 131, Today’s English Version
Lord, I have given up my pride
And turned away from my arrogance.
I am not concerned with great matters
Or with subjects too difficult for me.
Instead, I am content and at peace.
As a child lies quietly in its mother’s arms,
So my heart is quiet within me.
Israel, trust in the Lord
Now and forever!
* * *
Read the rest of this entry »
Back to my INFJ letters, and David’s shocking discovery that there are MORE like me out there! No wonder we’ve had to work hard to get along.
People with my personality profile are sometimes called ‘The Counsellor.’ People like David, ‘The Inspector.’ Need I say more?
Actually, I do. Read the rest of this entry »
This true story is at the end of Confessions of a Beginning Theologian. I referred to it in a recent post. Here’s more of the story, including the way it played out in my life a year later.
Several years ago I was in my car, on my way to the first day of spring semester classes. I felt shaky and uncertain. A year earlier, students had lodged serious complaints against me. They were reported to me anonymously at the end of the semester; several pages, single-spaced and typed. I was devastated. Read the rest of this entry »
lush jacaranda
floats fragrance on bright spring air–
sinks roots deep in soil
* * *
In fall 1999, when I was on my Nairobi sabbatical, I walked down this driveway and footpath daily. The scenery and smell were always changing, depending on the weather and what was cooking in the houses next to the footpath.
Because Nairobi is near the equator, the days and nights were nearly even. Sunrise and sunset arrived within half an hour of specified times. Within minutes daybreak arrived and the sun was up; dark descended just as suddenly. Flowers and flowering shrubs bloomed year round. During the day, the sun baked the top of my head. I carried a small sun parasol every time I left our apartment to walk to the main campus.
Most of the time it was dry and mild. Chilly in the early morning and at night, but pleasantly warm during the day, especially in the sun. Then the long rains began. Rain fell in sheets and torrents. They came suddenly, hung around for several weeks, and left as suddenly.
During the long rains, a large depression in a field next to the driveway/footpath quickly filled with enough water to create an impromptu pond. Planned, to prevent flooding. Plants, trees and pond life came alive. Everything covered in fine red dirt was now coated with thick red mud. Including my sandals and socks.
Jacaranda trees, not native to Kenya, came alive during the long rains. Because they don’t like thick red mud, their roots go deep and grow invasively looking for the soil and water they need. When they bloom it’s spectacular–not just the sight, but the fragrance. For a short time they’re at their peak. Then the flowers carpet the ground like confetti–one last look before they disappear until next time.
© Elouise Renich Fraser, 5 February 2015
Photo credit: DAFraser, Jacaranda Tree, October 1999
Jacaranda Flower from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacaranda
Dear Dad,
I finally know why I feel compelled to write these letters to you. They’re invitations to dinner! You don’t need to RSVP. I need to send the invitations.
It’s that simple. And complex. Here’s why. Read the rest of this entry »
Telling the Truth 