Kelly Schaefer: Fractured but not broken
Most of the people in Jasper know Kelly (Craig) Schaefer’s story by heart. In July of 1999, she was a college sophomore at Indiana University, spending a family vacation in Colorado, when a drunk driver hit the vehicle she was riding in. When she awoke in the hospital, her mother told...Read full story »
Monday, January 12, 2015
It really was a very good day
I was recently flying the friendly skies from Evansville to Chicago on my way to Phoenix. It was an easy flight, and midway the flight attendant announced the gate numbers for our connecting flights. I had a leisurely layover, and about 30 minutes before my flight was scheduled to depart, I...Read full story »
Thursday, December 18, 2014
The Longest Night
Sometimes, despite the tinsel and the carols, despite the fragrant wreaths and the twinkling lights, it’s hard to be festive in December. As Catholics we all know the story of the Nativity. We know about Joseph and Mary making the arduous trip to Bethlehem, and the arrival of our King...Read full story »
Tuesday, December 09, 2014
Watching the stars past and present
A long time ago when I was a young girl, my dad would invite me to go outside after the dishes were done and it was dark. We would sit in the backyard on our lawn chairs and look up at the stars together. On those warm summer nights, he would talk a little about the constellations above us,...Read full story »
Sunday, November 23, 2014
Spiritual and religious
There’s a mantra that’s been around for quite a while, and many people connect with it: “I’m spiritual, but I’m not religious.” What does that mean? When I think of the term “spiritual,” I think of a one-on-one intimacy with the Divine. B...Read full story »
Monday, November 03, 2014
Seeking mercy and forgiveness
Sometimes it’s good to make a really big mistake. Not because of the pain that it causes others, but because of the incomparable mercy and forgiveness that can follow. We get so complacent, sleep-walking through our lives, thinking we are doing okay. And if we see ourselves as living o...Read full story »
Monday, October 13, 2014
Loving ALL of God's creatures
Well, it happened again. My husband and I have two wonderful dogs, which we rescued from somewhere else. One is a beautiful cinnamon-colored Golden Retriever. She’s really lovely with her flowing locks, and she kind of knows it. Our other dog is an Australian Cattle dog. That dog is sm...Read full story »
Monday, September 29, 2014
Searching for a grateful heart
It’s been a very full two weeks. We’ve had many visitors and many wonderful moments in my home. There were three adult children including a pregnant daughter-in-law, three very young grandchildren, three dogs — two are ours and one was a visitor — and we were coordina...Read full story »
Monday, September 15, 2014
Are we more alike than different?
We are waiting on a grandchild named Moses, and he’s coming at the end of October. Late one evening recently, his mom and dad arrived from North Carolina clutching photos from his ultrasound. Both parents-to-be were still in awe at seeing his head of hair on a high-tech television moni...Read full story »
Monday, September 08, 2014
Thanksgiving for unanswered prayers
Back in 2008, when I was studying to be a spiritual director at Monastery Immaculate Conception in Ferdinand, we had a special guest one weekend. Her name was Sister Olga Wittekind. She was a Franciscan sister who was also a clinical psychologist. She had studied at the Jung Institute in Zurich. He...Read full story »
Thursday, August 14, 2014
