Perspective
Digital detox: how to guard the mind and slow the pace
It was time. Time to get away, to unplug, to finally write that novel. Time to prove he could resist the barrage of texts and tweets, news and notifications in […]
Perspective
Catholic entrepreneurs take the leap
Matt Martinusen lost his job at a precarious time. He was the sole breadwinner, and his wife, Lisa, a stay-at-home mom, had just had their third baby. The non-profit Matt […]
Perspective
Writing in the attic: the Catholic call to creativity
The idea came in a dream. It was just like the movies, the fantasy of every writer who has slogged away at a keyboard, awaiting inspiration. Haley Stewart’s came. “I […]
Perspective
Frost fair: creating something new in the dead of winter
The latest book by Sam Usher stopped me in my tracks. I’ve devoured the children’s books brilliantly illustrated by this Chicago dad, and the title of his new release immediately […]
Perspective
The thrifting Catholic: giving new life to old things
Emily Hannon was surprised by the children’s clothes she saw at big-box stores and popular websites when she became a mom. And not in a good way: Obnoxious graphics, offensive […]
Perspective
Bread, wine and a Norway spruce: the sacramental life
Before there were any buildings in Rockefeller Center, there was a Christmas tree. At the peak of the Great Depression, construction workers hungering for holiday cheer pooled their money to […]
Perspective
Rejection letters and the spiritual life
Just as “Tiger King” became a defining show of our early quarantine days and “Bridgerton” carried us through the first COVID-19 winter, “Squid Game” has dominated this fall. It’s not […]
Perspective
Bedtime stories of saints: comfort and companionship
We never really outgrow the desire for a bedtime story. It just takes different forms when we’re older: Netflix, the evening news, Instagram stories. But the original cannot be improved […]
Perspective
The hidden power of play: how to be young at heart
Every fall the push to do more intensifies. Sharpen your pencil and dig in. Produce more, study more, socialize more, exercise more, volunteer more. The calendar becomes the battlefield, its […]
Perspective
Life is just beginning: expansion at any age
I submitted two articles tonight, and moments after I hit send, I was struck by the parallel. Sure, they both involved retired Catholics. But in my focus on the specifics of […]
Perspective
House of grass and sky: an ode to the place that shapes us
Every house, in its own way, is a living thing. It changes as we change. It expands with joy and contracts under duress. This strikes me as a Catholic concept. […]
Perspective
Finding God in the wilderness
The sense of place and pull to the wild that inspired Nick Ripatrozone’s new book are tucked in his very name. The rip-roaring surname is the name of a mountain […]