Sophie's Story

     Lately C has discovered Mark Lowry. Mark is a Christian singer who was part of the Gaither Vocal Band from 1988 to 2001 and from 2009 to 2013.  C likes to listen to them because they sing a lot of the Baptist spirituals that he grew up with. They are also very, very good musicians. In addition to being a talented baritone, Mark is also a comedian.   I was listening to one of his comedy performances the other day. He started talking about people that he had met while travelling and performing. One of the things he mentioned is that he met people of different faiths that loved the Lord. This was eye opening to him as he had been raised to believe that his faith (Baptist) was the correct faith and that all the others were wrong. He went on to say that one thing he could never figure out was how to hate the sin and love the sinner. He said hating his own sins was a full time job. He didn't have time to hate anyone else's sins. Then he suggested that everyone should hate their

     Yesterday's weather report showed that it would be sunny and 60. There's only one thing to do in Minnesota when you see weather like this. Go outside. (Unless you have to work in which case you are stuck inside.)    For us this means a trip to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, a favourite place of ours. We decided to invite our friends, Ellen and Mac, to come with us. We drove together, something we can do because we have all been fully vaccinated. We stopped at a grocery store to pick up provisions for picnic lunch. We put the food in a cooler and drove to the Arboretum.    We were able to find a nice parking spot and took the cooler out. C and I had originally planned to eat in a shelter overlooking a field. There were tables there. However this meant we would have to carry the cooler there and then carry it all the way back to the car. This was going to take too much time. We found some tables on a terrace on one end of the old building. It overlooked a pond. It was su

      The weather is getting better. People are getting vaccinated. Things are inching toward "normal". Last evening C and I did something we have not done for a very long time. We had dinner at a friends' house. Since everyone is vaccinated (or nearly so) we were able to gather without masks.      I don't like to come to anyone's house empty handed so we picked up some flowers at a grocery store.  As we had not been to their house in a long time we got directions from C's phone. The phone directed us to come in a way that neither of us knew. The phone said we were at the right house, but it didn't look right. We had allowed ourselves some extra time in case traffic was bad so we were not late. C called Evan to ask for some directions. It turned out that we had turned one cul de sac too soon. we found their driveway and pulled in. We were greeted warmly at the door by Evan and his wife Mary.    Their house had not changed. It was beautifully decorated and

     As you all may know HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh died last week. I've always had a small interest in him. I had hoped that he would live to be 100. At it stands he missed that milestone by nearly two months.    I have always had a bit of an interest in the British monarchy. The idea of a family whose only job is to symbolize the country (because any real power had been gradually stripped away over the years) was intriguing. I think we try to imitate it in the United States using celebrities. (another column for another time.)    One time I read about Prince Philip and discovered that he was revered as a god by some people living on an island near Australia. They believe that he was the son of a mountain spirit who left the island and married a powerful woman. According to what I have read Prince Philip was aware of this and would sometimes sent portraits to the islanders.     I have a lot of respect for him because he was put in a position that very few men are put

     Two and a half sides of the house are now sided and look very nice. We like the colours we picked. Our neighbor, who is a home remodeler, complimented our new look. That made us happy. Our house was the lone eyesore on the block.    Then we noticed something.     "We're going to have to do something about the garage door," C said. He was right. The new siding made our dark brown, shabby looking garage door stick out like like a cat at a dog show. We walked around the house and looked at the front door.    "We'll need to get a new screen door and paint the inside door," C remarked. That was also true. The screen door was only slightly less shabby than the garage door. Through the screen the peeling red paint of the inside door was clearly visible. Once the siding was installed it would go with the rest of the house like whipped cream on lobster.     We'd have to get a doorbell too. The one we had didn't work. C thought it would be a good idea to

     This past week a high profile trial began in Minneapolis. It's being broadcast live on many channels and commentary makes the news every night. On one hand, I'm glad because people can see for themselves what witnesses and lawyers are saying and not depend upon the interpretation or reports of those in the courtroom. On the other hand, I worry about the safety of all those participating in the trial if it doesn't turn out the way some people want it to.    There are those who may think I'm being dramatic when I say this. I'm not. A few years ago a kicker on a football team missed a kick that would have given his team a win. The next week he got death threats from angry fans. Whistleblowers and other who say unpopular things often get death threats. I've even gotten a couple of them. Some will say that people who make those threats don't mean it. Well, it is a scary thing regardless. You have no idea if the person  threatening you is going to carry it ou