I've just returned from a weekend in Ann Arbor. You may ask "Why did she move to St. Louis if she's going to be running home to Michigan all the time?" I'm happy you brought that up. It's called having the best of both worlds. I have work I love in Missouri; most of My People are in Michigan. As long as they keep giving me cheap airfares back and forth, I'll be taking every chance to relish my many blessings.

This weekend gave me a chance to be convinced all over again how wonderful my kids are. We spent Saturday afternoon together, going out to lunch for Julia's 21st birthday (my baby!) and hanging around engrossed in good conversation, always a family talent. They have overcome many challenges over the past several years, and I've had reason to be very impressed by the adults they've become. That hasn't stopped. I respect them, appreciate their love, and want the very best for them always. (It should be noted that these sentiments apply fully to my dear daughter-in-law Tracy, whose presence in Steve's life is living evidence that God answers parents' prayers.)

Monday is the beginning of the second two-week Executive Program. I'll be moving into the Leadership Center - known to the cognoscenti as the 'Velvet Prison'. Yes, it's comfortable, but after the end of the last two week session, I'd practically forgotten the way back to my apartment. It was 64 degrees here today, so I hereby resolve to poke my nose outdoors regularly.

Thanks for being there.

You may notice that I am making up for the emotional depth of my Feb 23 post by being chatty and trivial lately. That's right - give yourself a point for deep perceptiveness. Today I present another example.

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Places I Would Like to Visit (in no particular order)

Italy - anywhere and everywhere, but it has to include Florence
St. Petersburg, Russia
Santa Fe, NM
Banff and Jasper, Alberta
The Grand Canyon and other canyon national parks
Sanibel Island, FL (it may have sad memories, but I will always love it)
England (I dream of getting a cottage in the Cotswolds and seeing Wales. And Chester.)
St. John, U.S.V.I.
Mackinac Island, MI (I know, it's shocking, but I've lived in Michigan for 45 years and have never visited)
Spring training (OK, it's not exactly a place, but you know what I mean)
Beaufort, SC
Door County, Wisconsin
Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island
Barcelona, Spain
Victoria, BC
New Zealand
Lake Wobegon, MN

This wasn't his fault. Give the guy a break.

(Anybody else out there longing for Opening Day?)

I am no Luddite, but sometimes the rollercoaster of societal change that roars by in the backwash of the Internet boggles my mind. A particularly pungent example I found recently is called How to Date and Blog (are you listening, Ju and Mir?).

I'm currently involved in one of my least favorite activities -- coming to grips with a new realization that there's something specific about my behavior, attitudes and assumptions that I deeply dislike. Partly because I'm not able to articulate it clearly, and partly because my pride doesn't like airing my dirty laundry in public, I'm not going to go into details about it here.

Christian tradition calls this the "conviction of sin". For me, that used to carry an extremely negative connotation, mixed with overtones of contempt, judgment and pressure to conform to the standards of others. Now, thanks to the passage of many years and the counsel of wise friends, I've grown to see it much differently.

It's like discovering a bank account I knew nothing about (an occurrence that has happened to me from time to time since Dave died). It means that there are possibilities that I haven't realized, opportunities for change that I couldn't even conceive of before, resources that won't be out of reach for long. I haven't yet gotten my arms around the reality of the change, but I know that it's there waiting for me, and I know what to do next. I will pray to become ready, willing and able for God to change me -- and, with help, I will wait in hope.

Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.