- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- October 9, 2022
It’s no secret. I like words. In fact, I get a kick out of keeping company with words. So today I thought I’d share a few words about a few words I find fascinating: oops, silly, and odor. I was at Mass one Sunday. The congregation had just finished singing
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- October 2, 2022
Some books I can’t let go of. I tell myself it’s time to donate this book to our library here, but I just can’t move myself to do it. Such a book is Canticles of the Earth by F. Lynne Bachleda. Published by Loyola Press in 2004, this little book
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- September 25, 2022
I admit, I feel sad that summer is ending where I live (in northeast Ohio, USA). These past few weeks, I’ve watched the sun creeping down on the horizon. I’ve noticed that the house finches, swallows, and bluebirds have disappeared. And I miss them. When I’m out driving, I’ve spotted
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- September 18, 2022
Today I’d like you to tell you the remarkable story of two men: Jia Haixia and Jia Wenqi. They live in a small village in rural China and have been friends since they were boys. Haixia was blind in one eye at birth from a cataract. Then he lost his
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- September 12, 2022
This week I want to share some quotes from an article I wrote many years. If you’re experiencing some hard times, I hope these quotes might speak to your heart. 1. Good is never done except at the expense of those who do it. (John Newman) 2. Do not let
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- September 4, 2022
Here’s a quote I’ve been carrying around with me for almost 27 years. It’s from the book How to Argue and Win Every Time (1995) by Gerry Spence. He writes: Wisdom does not usually fall from high places. The mighty and splendid have taught me little in life. I have
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- August 28, 2022
As we journey through life, we experience both positive and negative emotions. Positive emotions for most of us would include these: joy, gratitude, awe, love, serenity, hope, interest, a sense of purpose, satisfaction. Negative emotions might include these: fear, sadness, loneliness, inadequacy, shame, frustration, helplessness, failure. In short, we tend
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- August 21, 2022
(Please note: I know many of you are no longer receiving my blog in your email. I’m so sorry! Right now, our IT people can’t seem to find the problem. Until it is fixed, though, you can find my blog by using Google or Safari or whatever search engine you
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- August 14, 2022
If you’ve been reading this blog for a little while, you already know that one of my big pieces of advice is this: Hang on to your sense of humor! So today, here are a few items that I hope with bring a smile to your face. A few of
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
- July 31, 2022
(Please note: This week’s blog did not go out to my subscribers. I will not post a new reflection for the week of August 8. By then, I hope all of you who are subscribers, will receive this post. My next new post will be the week of August 15—I
