There is a quote from Pedro Arrupe, a Jesuit, that I read periodically and find simultaneously inspiring and challenging: "Nothing is more practical than finding God, than falling in Love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you...

It's been a long spring/winter in Michigan this year. We had snow all the way through April, and even into the first week of May! But even as the snow fell, I found that I was receiving inspiration and hope from the unlikeliest of sources... a parsley plant. Why? You ask... because I never expected it! This parsley was a gift from a gardening friend last summer. When she offered me the sad little sprouts, I thought to myself, "I don't even like parsley much." But then the tiny little sprout...

Shells are most beautiful when they're empty. I know that the creatures that live inside the shells are precious to their Creator, but honestly, the word "beautiful" is not one I would choose when describing the visceral mass that resides within. Because they're so vulnerable, most mollusks cannot survive without the protective layer of calcium they build around themselves. They're tender and edible, which is why so many creatures enjoy eating them. And so they live within a protective...