"The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time." – Abraham Lincoln In the dining room of our assisted living facility, one of my tablemates told me that she had recently received instructions from her physician to … Read more

One Christmas season, our church's Celebration Choir was introduced to a song entitled, "Mary, Did You Know?" which became very popular in both the spiritual and secular worlds. The words were written by Mark Lowry in 1984 as part of the … Read more

The national holiday for giving thanks in the United States of America is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. This custom stems from the three-day thanksgiving feast held in the autumn of 1621 by the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag … Read more

My father was a horticulturist, at least when it came to his fig tree; it was the focal point in the centre of our backyard. Dad would always be watching to see signs of life when the first green leaf would appear. He would spring into … Read more

It was a cold Christmas Eve. I found myself very comfortable within the lobby of my assisted living residence, conversing with staff members who were on duty. In the corner of a small sitting area, a highly customized manger scene had … Read more

The pace of activity has picked up tremendously at Arcadia Gardens. It all started with the daily hammering of wooden spikes in the courtyard. These preparations begin annually in October, as the property is transformed into formations … Read more

Every year at this time, memories of family get-togethers at my sister's home flood my mind. For a period of fifteen years, we would travel north from Pasadena, to Fresno, California, USA, to spend the American Thanksgiving holiday … Read more

For many years, I lived in the Coachella Valley, located in the Sonoran Colorado Desert of southeastern California, USA. Due to the warm, year-round climate, various varieties of palm trees grow in the valley. Most of the palms grow … Read more

Soon after moving into Arcadia Gardens, one of the activities that caught my attention was the steady line of walkers that were heading to the chandeliered dining room. I followed behind with my walker and was led to a table where I had … Read more

As a close-knit workgroup, we set out for a weekend camping trip to forge down the South Fork of the American River in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, southwest of Lake Tahoe near Sacramento, California, USA. The excitement … Read more

Try to exclude the possibility of suffering which the order of nature and the existence of free wills involve, and you find that you have excluded life itself. – C. S. Lewis Until my early sixties, I was a very active person. In my … Read more

Recently, I was inspired by a television Bible study on persecution presented by Hal Lindsey, an evangelist/teacher who focuses on biblical prophecy. Hal made an interesting comparison between what went on in the early church and the … Read more

Today marks the one-hundredth anniversary of the Armenian genocide, an event that occurred during the Ottoman Empire. It was on this date, April 24th, 1915, that several thousand Armenian intellectuals in Turkey were rounded up, arrested, … Read more

During Holy Week, many Christians throughout the world symbolically follow Christ's journey to the cross to enhance their spiritual experience of the journey from Pilate's judgment hall to Calvary. Prayers and reflections are considered … Read more

During the week between this past Christmas and New Year's, two white, pea-size eggs were carefully deposited in a nest the dimensions of an enlarged, thumb-sized thimble. The nest had been painstakingly constructed from spider webs and … Read more

While standing by my mother's hospital bed. I found myself attempting to understand what was really going on. I was familiar with the bed; mother had been in that bed at home. The oxygen tent was the added component; *Does it mean that my … Read more

We ought to behave ourselves every day as though we had not dependence on any other day. — Jonathan Edwards You may be surprised to know that I have always been an individual who puts off, postpones, or delays doing something. This is … Read more

While growing up in Westmont, New Jersey, USA, I was like every child anxiously waiting for Christmas to arrive. Part of every celebration was to have a decorated tree. I remember repeatedly asking my dad when we were getting our tree. The … Read more

My Italian friend, who was a tablemate where I live, loved to play the piano by ear, to the delight of the residents. Her favourite thing to do was to play requests from gathered audiences. On one private occasion, as she played "O Solo … Read more

Although Americans set aside one day each year in November as a day to give thanks, the Thanksgiving holiday celebration is slowly becoming less significant in the minds of millions of Americans. For some, Thanksgiving is merely a day to … Read more

It was in the late 1940s. My father was the pastor of a small Armenian Brethren congregation in Detroit, Michigan, USA. As my father arose from his chair to start his sermon by the reading of Scripture, he opened his Bible and in Armenian … Read more

The Californian Gold Rush of 1849 is surfacing again, though in a reduced form. It pales in comparison to the real thing in the mid-1800s, when prospectors sometimes just bent down and plucked nuggets of gold off the dirt. It is more than … Read more

The Fourth of July is celebrated in the United States to commemorate the Declaration of Independence, which was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. On July 4th, flags of red, white, and blue known as "Old Glory" or "the … Read more

I have a friend who reads the last chapter first when she starts a new book. She has always been a very inquisitive person, enjoying the process of analyzing how the story and characters are developed along the way. Knowing how the story … Read more

There are over 135 memorials, spread across 25 countries, which commemorate the genocide of over one million Armenians in 1915 because of their refusal to deny Jesus Christ and worship Allah. On April 24th each year, thousands of people … Read more

Jesus quoted this prophetic Scripture from Isaiah 56:7 as He went into the temple following His palm-strewn entry into Jerusalem the day before. The religious leaders were alarmed by His show of authority as He forcefully overturned the … Read more

One Friday, a work colleague spoke to me regarding a stray dog which she had found on the grounds of her church the previous Sunday. I thought, Perhaps the dog was left by the owner who didn't want to care for it. The colleague was … Read more

Materialism, or fixation on earthly possessions, is one of mankind's strongest temptations. During the past several months, with the help of friends, I have been going through a process of scaling down my personal belongings. My part in … Read more

The table is set in the dining room of the seniors' assisted care facility where I reside. Three of us ladies share this table each day. After the meal one day, we got into a conversation noting that there were several in our community … Read more

Recently, during a time of reflection regarding the Christmas tree, I read a very interesting study entitled, God's Christmas Tree, written by J. Hampton Keathley III, Th.M. The premise of the study is that although some may question the … Read more

As I see Christmas approaching, I am reminded of the preparations that have made the season special in our home. One such preparation was to go to a Christmas tree farm where we would choose our tree, and have it cut down and mounted on … Read more

Giving thanks doesn't rate highly in the socially-networked world where everyone is texting — very often to the person sitting next to them. Too many of us are so busy being "connected" that we have become disengaged from the world … Read more

One Saturday morning, a group of like-minded friends decided to attend a session with a colour analyst to "get our colours done". The most well-known approach to analyzing personal colouring is "seasonal" colour analysis, which places … Read more