The Christian religion asks us to put our trust not in ideas, and certainly not in ideologies, but in a God Who was vulnerable enough to become human and die, and Who desires to be present to us in our ordinary circumstances.

If grace is so wonderful, why do we have such difficulty recognizing and accepting it? Maybe it's because grace is not gentle or made-to-order. It often comes disguised as loss, or failure, or unwelcome change.

If we are lucky, we can give in and rest without feeling guilty. We can stop doing and concentrate on being.

It's all so beautiful . . . the spring . . . and books and music and fires. . . . Why aren't they enough?

Spring seems far off, impossible, but it is coming. Already there is dusk instead of darkness at five in the afternoon; already hope is stirring at the edges of the day.

Any life lived attentively is disillusioning as it forces us to know us as we are.

One may have been a fool, but there's no foolishness like being bitter.