Press On

Press On

In the year 2000, Pixar was riding a wave of success unrivalled in the history of movie studios. Their first three feature-length films – Toy Story, A Bug Life’s, and Toy Story 2 – had been smash hits.  Two future blockbusters – Monsters Inc. and Finding...
Strange Means of Grace

Strange Means of Grace

In 1995, the late Walt Wangerin Jr. was traveling in the west African nation of Cameroon.He came upon an appalling sight:  Two black birds were perched atop a donkey, pecking at an open wound. The African driver of his car, sickened by the scene, said aloud...
Facing Temptation

Facing Temptation

In April 2019, Ksenia Ovchinnikova bought a McDonald’s cheeseburger in her hometown of Omsk, Russia.It turned out not to be a happy meal.  Ovchinnikova, who is a member of the Russian Orthodox Church, was overwhelmed by guilt.  She had made a heartfelt...
The Perfect Planet

The Perfect Planet

The opening decades of the 21st century may well become known as the time astronomers bade farewell to one beloved planet and said hello to thousands of others.Pluto lost its place at the grownups table in our solar system back in 2006.   Even though “the...
The Grand Master

The Grand Master

It seemed that everyone who carried a Nerd Card in my high school – and I had a Nerd Gold Card – eventually joined the Chess Club.I was a capable chess player.  Generally I could whip my friends during lunch before they had a chance to finish their Fritos.When I...