I’m Complicated, And So Are You
I’m complicated, and so are you. This is the first of a three-part series on the complexity of being human.
Croissant, Degas, Chateau
How much butter is in a single piece of croissant? The answer: ignorance is bliss. Sitting in Paris' la Maison Angelina, the question is not 'to eat or not to eat'? It's how many do I eat? But the real treat of the visit is Angelina's hot chocolate, so rich, decadent,...
Human Strudel
It has been said of former President Bill Clinton that one of his marked qualities as a leader is the ability to give full and undivided attention to each conversation partner, and make each person feels like he is 100% interested in what they are saying.[1] It...
A Child of All Nations
Stolen from a book title by my favorite Indonesian author, the late Pramoedya Ananta Toer, the title of this blog post captures the essence of what I consider my life personal statement, to be a child of all nations. I consider the entire world as a classroom and...
Book List: My Top 20
My favorite books, in no particular order. May change in the future. Education by Ellen White* The Places in Between by Rory Stewart* The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel* Man Is Not Alone by Abraham Joshua Heschel* God, Gödel, and Grace by Clifford Goldstein* The...
Home in Prayer
There is a quiet place, carved in neither space nor time, where two worlds meet and two beings linger. Two diametrically opposed persons, one is love and the other selfish. Yet in this quiet place, there is perfect comfort and complete acceptance. I seem to know of...
Save the Best for Now
One of the things that my childhood best friend and I used to do a lot was to dress up in the same clothes. Our moms would buy us the same t-shirts or the same dresses in different colors, as if to say to the world, "Yea, we hang together." There was one time though...
It’s Personal
As a canvasser a few years ago, I was often told that when people reject me at the door, don't be discouraged, since they're not rejecting me, they're rejecting the One who sent me. While I understand where they're coming from, I never fully agree with that counsel. I...
The Art of Answering Questions
Or, The Joy of Meeting Fascinating People Recently, I had the awesome privilege of meeting a brilliant educator from Indonesia, who, for me, was the best question-answerer I’ve ever met. He sat on a panel discussion, and the way he answered questions was just so…...