Have you ever been in a work environment where there is a boss hovering over? There’s no communication going on. People are impatient with everything that’s happening. No one wants to give any more than the minimum, and any mistake is criticized. People gossip and like to see others’ reputation put down, so that they…
Some 25 years ago, I worked at Fenway Park. But not on the inside. I worked in the parking garage behind the Green Monster, the famous big green wall in left field. So, my first day, I got a red shirt with staff on the back, and I decided I’d go into the ballpark. I…
I ran into an old acquaintance recently, and we began catching up about what we had been doing for the past upteen years. She began to tell me about her teaching position in college, where she teaches a complicated science. She loves what she teaches and she has a passion. The problem? The students are…
Family & Friends / Glorious / Joyful / Luminous / Sorrowful
It’s almost 23 years ago that the first of my friends got married. When your friends get married, it’s like popcorn popping. First there’s one. Everyone’s amazed and excited at that one, because it’s the first time. Then a little later there’s another. Everyone’s still excited, and getting a little more accustomed to it. Then…
In some of my earlier times that I went to Ecuador, I was getting to know some of the local people in the village where I had helped to fund the church construction. I was having breakfast one morning with an older woman and her young daughter who lived next door to where I was…
I am not a natural born fisherman. In fact, I’ve never fished much in my life. I was never all that excited to fish. But one day some years back, a friend from my work invited me and another coworker to go fishing on his boat. We went out off the north shore of Massachusetts…
A few weeks ago here in Lima, I was coming back with some people from an event, and we were approaching the large front doorway of an institution where a number of the people who were with us were living. It was after 8pm at night, and although it’s a city, we could all see…
Where I am now in Lima, Peru, it is a desert. When you look around, it appears that there is no way that people should be able to live here. How are there 10 million people living in a desert? Somehow, they get water to show up. One morning a few weeks ago, I turned…
Sean McDonough is coming home. Sean McDonough is a TV and radio sports announcer who used to announce for the Boston Red Sox. Some years ago, he left announcing the Red Sox games for another opportunity. That was a surprise to a lot of people, because he is from the Boston area. He was well…
There once was a large company that manufactured widgets in a large factory. That factory earned the company $1 million per day producing widgets non-stop, day and night. One day, all of a sudden, the machine stopped. Shop workers rushed to find the problem but couldn’t find anything to agree on. Middle managers came and…
11 Years ago today I started posting my reflections on a blog site that is now non-existent. A few years later, I moved over to WordPress, and have been at this address of alivingmonstrance.wordpress.com ever since. To new and longer-term subscribers alike, thanks for reading and following! I can’t believe it’s been 11 years. If…
On the property where I’ve been staying the last few days here in Lima, there are two fig trees. Fig tree are often included in places like the Bible as symbols of peace and prosperity. After eating some of these sweet green figs, you’ll know why. Like me, you probably would want to then learn…
