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Tonight I am taking part in the Great Blogging Experiment about writing compelling characters. At first I wondered what I could possibly add to the discussion — we all know that compelling characters need to be believable and come alive, and have a host of other attributes. But what makes a character believable or come…

The first time Daddy found out about me, it was from behind glass during a routine visit to prison, when Ma lifted her shirt, teary-eyed, exposing her pregnant belly for emphasis. ~ Liz Murray So begins Liz Murray's book, Breaking Night: A Memoir about Forgiveness, Survival, and my Journey from Homeless to Harvard. The first sentence…

Erik Wesner posed a question on his latest post on the blog Amish America that asked, “Are Amish women happy?” I responded with these comments: The answer to this first question posed is probably as varied as the question of “Are American women happy?” It is impossible to make a generalization. Yes, Amish women have…

Today I have another guest blogger. Some of you are probably familiar with Monica the Mennobrarian, but if not, you'll want to visit her blog. If you've every tried any of her recipes, you know she has got to be a great cook. Her recipe for Bruschetta is phenomenal! Besides being a good cook and homemaker,…

Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days. ~Doug Larson   On a late Sunday morning, around the time many Amish church services have progressed to the last "song", I am listening to Amish church singing or chanting, which sounds much like a Gregorian chant. The German songs from…

by Dr. Lucinda Martin   Saloma has asked me to write a guest blog to explain what Pietism is. By way of introduction, I should say that I have studied and written extensively on various aspects of Pietism. I am currently a Research Fellow at the Universitaet Halle in Germany where I am working on…

Thank you all for your supportive and insightful comments. I'm sorry that I don't have time to respond to each individually. Susan, you are absolutely right… I've written and said those words many, many times. — "I think people over-romanticize the Amish. They are people like everyone else, and the same problems exist among them…