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Select a Month October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 February 2008

October 2018

October 17, 2018

Waiting for Nothing to Happen

When I was in my twenties, toward the end of a not-especially-dissolute but nonetheless untethered...

October 15, 2018

Morning in a Forgotten Neighborhood

The other day it was raining. The clouds were impossibly low, skimming the tops of...

October 03, 2018

The Lost Goodbye

You've been gone for only hours In a casket made of wood When no one...

October 01, 2018

A Conversation with Alicia Ostriker: Part 1

Image issue #98 includes poems by critic, activist, and biblical scholar Alicia Ostriker, winner of...

September 2018

September 28, 2018

Poetry Friday: “Bird on Knee”

Like Emily Dickinson, Bray describes hope as thing with feathers, “an eastern phoebe.” Turning on...

September 17, 2018

Tune in to Great TV Tonight

The Emmys air tonight, and here at “Good Letters” we’re gratified that our bloggers have...

September 06, 2018

The Disastrous Wizard of Oz

My teenage granddaughter Phoebe was visiting us from out of town. On these visits, we...

September 05, 2018

Tahlequah’s Grief

On July 24, an orca calf died off the coast of British Columbia within thirty...

September 04, 2018

At the Table

1. The temptation is there. Every time my daughter rubs her elbow against it, the...

September 03, 2018

My Grandfather’s Garden

My grandfather’s death came surprisingly quickly, and I witnessed his rapid decline over the three...

August 2018

August 30, 2018

Cathedrals of Consumption

Many years ago now, not long after I had been received into the Orthodox Church,...

August 29, 2018

Caves of Wonder

To reach the mouth of Mammoth Cave’s historic entrance, we made a short descent into...

August 28, 2018

Athlete: That’s Me!

When I bought the shirt, I didn’t think much of it. It was for workouts,...

August 23, 2018

The Vision Will Not Disappoint

It is a miracle that we do not love; love is the watermark in the...

August 22, 2018

The Modern Predicament

You might stumble into a lengthy life through no particular fault of your own. You...

August 21, 2018

Meditations of a Library Assistant in the BS Aisle

As I shuffle through the stacks pushing my cart of books along, awkwardly favoring one...

August 20, 2018

Doorways to Death

My house has doors built for death. When my husband and I first bought it...

August 14, 2018

Marital Anger and Icelandic Rock Spirits

The first time I threw something in a pathetic fit of anger, my husband and...

August 13, 2018

A Conversation with Welcome Wagon’s Vito Aiuto, Part 3

The Welcome Wagon’s Vito and Monique Aiuto released their first album, Welcome to the Welcome...

August 09, 2018

A Conversation with Welcome Wagon’s Vito Aiuto, Part 2

The Welcome Wagon’s Vito and Monique Auito are known for their endearing, lush, and earnest...

August 08, 2018

A Conversation with Welcome Wagon’s Vito Aiuto, Part 1

After years of holding intimate hymn-singing gatherings in their living room, Reverend Vito and Monique...

August 07, 2018

Here Is Where We Wait

This summer, I climbed the rotting steps to the hayloft of my family's barn to...

August 06, 2018

Can a Racist Drive a Prius? Stereotypes and the Single Story

I think it's good for me when my stereotypes of others are challenged. Like this...

August 02, 2018

Abandoning Prayer

If you can keep your faith once you’ve stopped using prayer as an attempt to...

August 01, 2018

I’ll Be Waiting Right Here

Apparently, running late may be a symptom of optimism, creativity, and literally perceiving time differently....

July 2018

July 31, 2018

A Conversation with Barbara Brown Taylor

Barbara Brown Taylor is an Episcopal priest, teacher, and author of thirteen books, among them...

July 30, 2018

Wabi-Sabi: Living with Beauty and Ugliness

Yesterday, a man might have killed me. Both receptionists were away from the counter when...

July 26, 2018

Rubble and Re-Creation

In the beginning, when God was creating the heavens and the earth, the earth was...

July 25, 2018

Life Is Short; Art is Long

As part of our tourist rounds in Chicago my wife and I visited the Art...

July 24, 2018

Taking Our Chances with Choice

Contingency…subject to chance…uncertain…right down to the molecular level. — Christian Wiman It is one of...