- By Melannie Svoboda SND
A few weeks ago, I mentioned a book I was reading, Jennifer Ackerman’s Notes from the Shore. For my June 5th post, I wrote about the “homing instinct,” an instinct so beautifully exemplified in ospreys. Ackerman shares many other facts in her book that amazed me. Here’s another one. Astronomer
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
As we celebrate the Fourth of July in the USA, let us reflect on the gift of freedom. What is freedom? I like this definition: “Freedom is nothing else than the chance to be better.” Why have we been gifted with freedom? Only this: to love. We might think, “I
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
Recently, Krista Tippett, on her podcast On Being, interviewed Tracy K. Smith, U.S. Poet Laureate from 2017-2019. They both agreed that poetry is more important than ever today when our public conversations are often so “fractious and strident.” Why is poetry so vital? Because poetry gets at “undergirding truth,” not
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
I was thinking about my cousins lately. Maybe that’s because I recently had lunch with one of my cousins, Peggy. We hadn’t seen each other since her Dad’s funeral not too long ago. It was so enjoyable being with her. She is someone who shares much of my early history
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
Is sensitivity a cross or a gift? Sometimes we think of sensitivity as a cross we bear. We reason, “If I weren’t so sensitive, I wouldn’t feel all this pain—not only my own pain, but the pain of others.” Yet, we also know that sensitivity can be a great gift.
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
Years ago, when I was a young nun, I came into the side entrance of our provincial house one day and saw an elderly Sister sitting on the bench by the door. Sister Ferdinand (not her real name) had dementia at a time when we knew very little about the
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
I’ve been doing some reading and reflecting on joy lately. After all, as Christians we believe in the Good News. Doesn’t that imply joy? For today’s post, I have strung together some of my favorite quotations about joy from a wide variety of writers. I would be interested in knowing
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
Last February, I gave a talk on Mary at St. Ladislas Parish in Westlake, Ohio. The talk was part of their Lenten Mission. The title of the talk was “Mary: Woman of Hope and One of Us.” The parish taped the presentation and sent it to me. Since the month
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
Do you have any morning rituals? Are there little things you do each morning to start your day? For example, do you hop into the shower right away? Or do you grab your cup of coffee or tea first? Do you check your email or do you sit quietly for
- By Melannie Svoboda SND
One of my favorite podcasts is Krista Tippett’s On Being. She has interviewed a wide range of people including theologians, scientists, social activists, artists, poets, political leaders, and others from all over the world. Recently, she had one of my favorite writers on her show, Barbara Brown Taylor, an Episcopal
