penny's pages
purposeful ponderings
Why do you think some people are successful in life and others are not? When I read this question, my first thought is, I question this question. I think the answer depends on an individual’s definition of success. Is success measured by riches–money, possessions, demographic–or recognition–fame, acceptance, affirmation–or reward–achievements, expertise, excellence? Or is success in […]
Five Stars I don’t often review two books at once, but Walking with Bilbo and Walking with Frodo by Sarah Arthur ought to be included together. These are devotionals that draw from quotations and story elements from Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings series respectively. The formats of each have slight differences, […]
My youngest son and I escaped the house to go for a walk. It was drizzly, which means I probably would have skipped walking outside any other day. But, walking is one way we can maintain some well-being during this stay-at-home request. As we walked we talked, especially about his classes. We laughed as we […]
In these sequestered days, I find myself more encouraged than discouraged. As I shared in my post last week, I’m rarely bothered with having more time at home. Canceled plans are less of an annoyance than undecided ones. The whether-to-or-not seems more of a burden than if the answer is mandated. Yet, even though we […]
Five Stars I highly recommend reading this historical perspective about Bellevue Hospital. The vast information about what doctors understood and misunderstood about medicine and human nature was as fascinating as it was disturbing. This is a great book to read while we are navigating our own pandemic health crisis.
As my calendar adjusts to recent cancellations, I realize my excuses for not writing are dwindling. Writing is something I challenge myself to do every day. After all, I am a writer. But, sometimes I’m happy for the distraction to not write. It’s an odd contradiction. Sometimes writing feels like work. It becomes an obligation. […]
A few nights ago, I was playing through a hymn I’ve been working on for several weeks. It’s full of those broken chords I mentioned a few weeks ago. It may be in the key of C, but there are a few accidentals that add a bit of challenge for this middle-aged adult beginner-pianist. Yet, […]
Five Stars I loved Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. But, it wasn’t the train-wreck plot and flawed characters that kept me reading. It was one character and how she reminded me of someone dear to me. Perhaps those are why books become more meaningful to us. Because we see real people. Because we may […]
The other day, my mom asked if she might use a poem I wrote for a devotional she presented when she started as a trustee for our alma mater. I said, of course. After all, I had written it at her request. But, the title she mentioned, which did sound familiar, was for a poem […]
Before social media and Smartphones, I often forgot to bring my camera on vacations. If I did remember pack one, I forgot to bring it on our daily excursions. If I did remember to bring it on our daily excursions, I forgot to use it. I preferred to write about my experiences and relied on […]
