Russellings of the Spirit

Latest Posts


  • What a Friend

    I noticed them during the second hymn that Sunday morning. While everyone else stood and sang along, I saw that Sylvia and Jim were still sitting in their seats at the end of the aisle. Sylvia was bent over at… Continue reading

  • Check it off!

    Apparently, I am immortal. At least that is the conclusion one might draw based on my recent behavior. In two weeks, we will arrive at the one-year anniversary of the day I asked for – and RECEIVED! – an estate planning… Continue reading

  • A Chat with Dad

    Today I am going to do something I have not done before. Since today is November 1, I have decided I am going to hold my own, small, very Anglo version of Día de los Muertos. Dia de los Muertos, or… Continue reading

  • Boo! Humbug!

    I think I am in serious need of an Ebenezer Scrooge-like intervention. Except instead of reshaping my attitude about Christmas, this one should target my ideas about Halloween.  I’m a real “BOO, Humbug!” kind of guy when it comes to… Continue reading

  • Fixing the Unfixable

    I like to fix stuff. Mind you, I am not technically skilled enough to be worthy of a nickname like “Mr. Fixit” or anything else quite so lofty. I just really love the challenge of standing in front of something… Continue reading

  • “It’s Too Much!!”

    Stop a minute and take a look at this sidewalk.  Notice the flat center section? And then to either side of it, do you see the two slightly inclined sections? Two years ago, when my back pain was at its… Continue reading

  • Free As the Breeze?

    Since retiring from the world of work four years ago, I have experienced several foundational… you might even call them seismic… shifts in my life. There has been, naturally, the anticipated change in income. There was, for Joan and I, the… Continue reading

  • Try Everything?

    Few things bring me greater joy in life than singing. I love the art and the discipline and the total immersion in the moment singing brings.  I sing in the car. I sing in the shower. I sing to our… Continue reading

  • The Infection Question

    In case I haven’t mentioned it before, I love my dogs.  There is Rosie, the 5-year-old (on the left) and Patrick, Rosie’s daddy, the 7.5-year-old.  Both are of the Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier persuasion. We acquired Rosie first when she was… Continue reading

  • Hope for the Hopeless

    Here we are, at the end of August. In the universe of organized sports, this moment is a bit of an inflection point.  Basketball and hockey are still in hibernation for a while. (But seriously, does anyone care?) College football starts today… Continue reading