The irony of last week’s blog title, Caught Speeding, only dawned on me yesterday. It’s not the first time I’ve been caught this year. But it was an unexpected encounter with porcupine wisdom that made the lesson stick. In January, …
As of yesterday, I’ve walked this earth sixty-five years! Without question, it’s the most significant milestone ever. It beats turning fifty, a year into my new life as a self-employed single person. Half a lifetime of trying to adapt to …
Sunshine, blue skies, and mid-70s-breezes embraced me as I set off for home from the Horizons Unlimited Travellers meeting in Virginia last Sunday. Perfect riding weather belied that I’d be dancing on the edge of comfort before long. I’d taken …
A recent social event included a few people I hadn’t met. “This is Liz Jansen,” said the host, introducing me to a woman sitting at the end of a sofa. “Ah, Jansen,” she said. “Danish!” “Right.” Names tell us much …
What’s in A Name? Five Women Called Elizabeth Jansen Read more »
Death has been on my mind a lot lately. Not because I sense mine is imminent, but it’s all around. And it’s teaching me about joyful living. Last week I attended a celebration of life for friends’ thirty-five-year-old daughter. Earlier …
How We Can Learn About Joyful Living from the Dying Read more »
Dad always farmed, his life revolving around the seasons. Only in winter, when nature hibernated, did the frenzy ease. That’s when he pruned his orchards, removing what was necessary to keep fruit trees strong and bearing as much as possible. …
My journey described in Crash Landing did not end with the last chapter. It continues to unfold and if anything, the pace has picked up. Always, there are lessons, reminders, and events that initiate reorganization, rework, and refining of life …
A balanced world is a better world. That’s the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day being commemorated today. The organizers ask us to celebrate women’s achievement, raise awareness against bias, and take action for equality to “forge a more …
Building a Better World: Gender Equality is a Start Read more »
Have you ever wished you could drop by your local bookstore and pick up a Book of Answers? Life can be challenging and solid solutions hard to come by. We get into situations we’ve never experienced and don’t know how …
The Mennonite kindergarten in Einlage, southeastern Ukraine, was a Nazi showpiece. WWII Nazi occupiers had gone door-to-door, categorizing inhabitants according to “genealogical and racial biological” criteria. One hundred and twenty-nine of the 10,000 kindergarten children deemed to have “German blood” …
A Chilling Tale: Mennonite History and the Holocaust Read more »