My Life Story in Books
(Previously published for Lessons from the Trail subscribers in February 2021) For the past several months, I’ve had difficulty sleeping at night. But (after experimenting with other remedial measures) I’ve…
Emergence: Becoming the Best Version of Yourself
In this anxious season, nature is an instructive force. By watching native plants emerge this spring, I’ve learned about becoming the best version of yourself.
Heirs Together of the Grace of Life
Judy and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary a month ago. We passed the day quietly—we did a short run in the morning, drove to Goderich for lunch, sat on…
Gardening During a Pandemic
When the world seems unpredictable and out-of-control, a garden is not only a physical refuge and a spiritual reservoir, but a sign and a symbol that we will emerge one day into a new future that we can still help create.
Disappointment
I thought I would have been more disappointed than I was. A week ago today was the day I was expecting to run the Boston Marathon. Until, that is, the…
Comfort in a Dangerous Time
The current coronavirus pandemic, as a respiratory illness, has caused me to reflect on some of my childhood experiences with sickness. For whatever reason, as a young boy I was…
Eyes Wide Open
One warm, sunny, snow-less afternoon earlier this month, I took my DSLR camera and walked to a street near our home. This street is not more than 200 m long…
Lost & Found
Among other things, I will remember 2019 as the year of lost and found. In July, I lost my wedding ring. It was my third wedding ring in 39 years.…
Pain and Privilege
You could say we’ve been lucky when it comes to missing heavy rainstorms during our annual hiking expeditions. Yes, we did hike through a brief thunderstorm while on Surplus Mountain…
Water Crossing
There was a point in time at which Judy said to me, “Can we please not go to any more islands for our holidays?” Since then, we’ve visited five of…