The Stag Who Lived Forever
It was a matter of great importance, and the morning wind that carries the mist and the butterflies carried the news in a kind of dance, like the laugh of the first baby, when it…
Category: Best of F&F Archive
The Great Cabin: An Adventure on Board HMS Victory
In 2013, I had a very special and ever-memorable adventure on board the historic HMS Victory. But before telling my story, I’d like give a little background as to how I came to be a…
Identity: What We Do Changes Who We Are
This thing about identity—there’s more here than meets the eye, more here than most psychologists talk about, more here than we can understand, and what I’m going to present is more questions than answers. But…
When I Am Weak, I Am Strong: Frodo’s Providential Heroism
The tiny figure of a hobbit stands on the edge of a precipice, shrouded in a surreal haze. With an eerie glare flickering across his face, he clutches a chain in his grimy hand,…
Hope at Damietta
Cold dawn with its promise to transform into sweltering desert heat later that afternoon broke over the lines of sleeping, heavily-chained captives. My brother Juste and I were among them. It was several…
Rose’s Thorn
It is quiet in the room. The low rasp of steel on leather mixes with the cool hiss of the sword itself as it is withdrawn from the simple sable sheath. Light flashes off the…
The Sea Within: A Meeting of Matter and Spirit
Why are we in love with the sea? Everyone knows we are, but no one knows why… Modern times are not the low tide of sea-love but the high. Our minds may have demythologized the…
American Patriotism: Loving Our Land as the Image of Christ
What does it mean to be an American patriot? Is it allegiance to the flag? Is it obedience to the government? Is it trust in the power of one’s military? What does being patriotic look…
Mary’s Meditation
The world’s aged sunlight mottles my son’s tombstone in tarnished, dusty gold. I sit beside the cavern of rock where he lies. I stroke the cold, rough surface. I finger the damp, dead grass. I…
Stratford and Shakespeare: Exploring the Birthplace of the Bard
Two years ago, I was assigned to read Shakespeare’s play Hamlet at college for English Literature, and would later delve into King Lear for the same reason. As part of my study of the famous…