A Beacon of Light

“It takes two mento make one brother.”Israel Zangwill When my brother Tom and I were younger,… MUCH younger, we occasionally went on bike rides together in San Francisco. There are two excursions I distinctly recall. On one occasion, we rode our bikes around Lake Merced to Brotherhood Way. Being the older brother (he was in…

“Our fingerprintsdon’t fade from thelives we’ve touched.” Judy Blume How ironic that the quote above is from author Judy Blume. I was not familiar with her work until 1979, when I was hired to teach junior high literature at Saint Christopher School in San José. The principal had told me to select books for the seventh…

“Never underestimatethe power ofyour presence.”Theo Boyd Throughout my life, there have been numerous times when I have made the decision not to attend a function to which I had been invited — or to which one might have expected me to attend. Such events could include weddings, funerals, birthday parties, class reunions, or just gatherings…

“Speak less thanyou know;have more thanyou show.”William Shakespeare(Paraphrased) It’s an interesting thing… research from more than thirty years ago indicates that some male college professors have been known to teach in such a way that the learner could not possibly understand clearly what he was teaching. For example: Instead of saying something as simple and…

“I know for certain that we never lose the people we love, even to death. They continue to participate in every act, thought, and decision we make. Their love leaves an indelible imprint in our memories. We find comfort in knowing that our lives have been enriched by having shared their love.”Dr. Leo Buscaglia •…

“God loves us,God loves you all,and evil willnot prevail.”Pope Leo XIV What an exciting day for Kathy, my brother Tom, and the other pilgrims who attended the morning Angelus prayer with Pope Leo XIV today. Kathy, Tom, and more than a dozen others have spent the past thirteen days exploring the history of Saint Ignatius…

“The faith that anyone couldmove from rags to richeswas once at the core ofthe American Dream.”Robert Reich Since the founding of our country, the definition of the American Dream has been constantly evolving. The term means different things to different people. The American Dream in 2025 seems to be considerably different from my understanding of…

“The years teach muchwhich the daysnever knew.” Ralph Waldo Emerson I must admit that, eleven years ago today, I did not understand how becoming a grandparent would change my life for the better. My eldest son, Tom, and his wife, Hillaray, gave birth to their first child, Liam, on September 8, 2014. There was certainly…

“Life is a precious gift —a gift we often take forgranted until it isthreatened.” Lecrae I don’t think I’ve ever had a true “near death experience.” In fact, only one occasion comes to mind which make me think that I might have been closer to death than I realized at the time. It happened in…