Richard and I stood at another glass-enclosed kiosk and studied the enlarged map of the old city. We consulted and photographed such maps frequently during our 6-week/10 countries trip to Europe a few years ago. We loved the confidence and security experienced when we found the red circle indicating, “You Are HERE.” This particular time, [...]
By Leona Bergstrom, Re-Ignite I am an old Monarch. No, I’m not the Queen of England. I’m a butterfly currently hanging out in a beautiful garden in the Pacific Northwest. I’ve been fluttering around here for a couple of weeks and have seen a lot of things come and go—blossoms, people, and insects. On an ordinary [...]
These days I am disinfecting everything that doesn’t move. I was a tad chagrined to notice that for some time, I’ve ignored one significant surface—my computer keyboard. Meticulously I took a treasured Lysol wipe to the little white keys. Two keys were particularly grubby: Escape and Control. Curious. They must be my most frequently used. [...]
Author's note: This was written in 2016, and while the depth of emotion is similar to then, the reality of our Easter weekend in 2020 is so much different. No Easter egg hunts, no frilly dresses, no choirs singing. In the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, we face grief and loss head-on. May we, on [...]
I was ten years old living on Flathead Lake in Montana when our family purchased our first dog. He came with a pedigree and had a royal sounding name–Count Tour Zoom Saber Jet Ryder. That was a long name for a dog. We called him “Zoom.” I can still remember calling out to him…”Here Zoom, [...]
Until today, I considered myself an active, engaged, still-working Boomer–enthusiastically involved in ministry with my peers. That was until today when they moved the line. I am now in a separated group called “age 65 and older.” Our federal and state governments are expecting those born before the year 1956 to stay home. Get out [...]
written by Richard Bergstrom, D.Min., President, ChurchHealth *Published on March 4, 2020 - prior to the wave of church closures. You heard me right. I’m thinking about giving up church for Lent. Last year I attended a church that placed a high priority on all the disciplines associated with Lent Season, beginning on Ash Wednesday and [...]
Everything they touched had a story. A necklace from the loves of their lives; a vase that belonged to a mother or aunt; a photo of past generations or families celebrating at long dining tables; dead rose petals from a funeral spray; birthday cards yellowed with age. Each item evoked a memory, resurrected a loved [...]
Written by Richard Bergstrom, January 10, 2020 During these long winter evenings, Leona and I have been watching the NETFLIX series "The Crown." In Season 3 Episode 5, Princess Alice of Battenberg, the mother of Prince Philip and mother-in-law of Queen Elizabeth II, is visiting with her brother Louis Mountbatten, the uncle of Prince Philip [...]
Since obtaining my first set of glitter glasses in the fourth grade, I have been dependent on refracted glass to help me see. It is amazing what these lenses have done to improve my life. I went from detecting green blurs to actually distinguishing individual leaves on the trees! For years, through the marvel of [...]
