According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, poinsettias are perennial shrubs that were once considered weeds in their native region of southern Mexico. Flowering in the winter season, the bushes can grow 10 to 15 feet tall in the wild, and the Aztecs used their colorful leaves to make reddish-purple dye for fabrics and their sap as a medicine to control fevers.
Read MoreDorcas Reilly was one of the first full-time employees in Campbell Soup Company's Home Economics Department in Camden, Jew Jersey, in the 1950s when she experimented with green beans and Campbell's cream of mushroom soup. Her creation? "Green Bean Bake."
Read MoreI am sitting in a second-floor open-air room in the Presbyterian Education Board (PEB) compound in Lahore, Pakistan, listening to the clatter of silverware as people scurry about setting tables in preparation for a 25th-anniversary party this evening. Chicken is roasting on giant grills across the plaza, and two mosques on either side of the compound have started their adhan chants for afternoon prayer.
Read MoreAs you prayerfully consider the Cedar Creek pledge cards that were mailed out earlier this month, what will you give to help our congregation encourage the surrounding community to experience the freedom, deep peace, and enduring love of Jesus Christ? How can we be a church that empowers our communities to not just survive but thrive?
Read MoreThe National Audubon Society Wildflowers of North America -- a classic guidebook for nature lovers -- has been updated this year, and some of the entries are eyebrow-raisers, for sure. Consider these curious wildflower entries, for example:
Read MoreFor one company in South Yorkshire, innovation is about sustainability, clean energy, and microgrid technology. The Airlander 10 is a spacious airship filled with helium, which is more expensive and less buoyant than hydrogen, but also less flammable and therefore far safer than the old-time blimps most of us envision.
Read MoreWhat comes to mind when you imagine ancient Greek and Roman statues? White marble figures with sightless eyes and flowing robes? After all, that is what we see in standard textbooks and museums worldwide. And it is simply not true.
Read MoreFat Bear Week in Katmai National Park & Preserve in coastal southwest Alaska saw a record 1.4 million online votes this past week, with a dominant mama bear named Grazer winning the competition.
Read MoreThe Rule of Saint Benedict was written some 400 years after Jesus was crucified to bring order to a community of monks in Italy. Benedict of Nursia, the monk known as Saint Benedict, is often referred to as the patron saint of Europe primarily because of the set of rules he wrote for monks to follow.
Read MoreAccording to a report published this week by the nonprofit group Common Sense Media, teens get 237 or more notifications on their phones each day -- a number that likely rivals many adults as well. The challenge comes when teens and adults alike are unable to turn off the barrage, concerned that they may miss something important or let someone down.
Read MoreWhen the James Webb Space Telescope captured what looks like a bright orange question mark hovering in space, many declared the photo a hoax prompted by congressional hearings on UFOs and the ensuing social media chatter over the past two months. But Webb scientists say the photo is no hoax.
Read MoreIn his essay "How to Grow Old," mathematician and philosopher Bertrand Russell defines the walk to a more fulfilling life: "Make your interests gradually wider and more impersonal, until bit by bit the walls of the ego recede, and your life becomes increasingly merged with the universal life."
Read MoreHenri Nouwen was a Roman Catholic priest, professor, and theologian who published 39 books and hundreds of articles exploring the Christian walk. In his book Discernment, Nouwen ponders how we hear God's voice in our daily lives:
Read MoreHear these wise words from a friend's recent online post: A co-worker came in, paused, and put their hand on their heart, sighed, and walked away. I was in training but caught them when they walked by again and asked if they needed something. They said, "I just needed to stop by because you remind me of where my heart needs to be just by seeing you and being in your presence."
Read MoreIn Baku, Azerbaijan, spectators are holding their breath today as the 2023 Chess World Cup Final is played out in a rapid-play tiebreaker: Five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen, a 33-year-old Norwegian, will play 18-year-old Indian chess prodigy Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa -- with billions in India cheering on their teen hero.
Read MoreAccording to a new Gallup survey released this week, saying hello to the people you encounter could have a notable impact on your own well-being: Adults who greeted up to six people regularly boosted their own social, physical, financial, career, and community health in remarkable ways.
Read MoreSarah de Lagarde was on her way home from work one evening in September 2022 when she got off at the wrong London Underground station and fell into the gap between the platform and the train. Her right arm was crushed above the elbow and her right leg was crushed below the knee, leading to double amputations. This week, however, Sarah was fitted with an AI bionic arm that is miraculously giving her back her freedom.
Read MoreAccording to social work professor and researcher Brene Brown, feeling vulnerable is that counter-cultural moment when we are at risk and uncertain: "We've found that across cultures, most of us were raised to believe that being vulnerable is weak," Brown writes in Atlas of the Heart. "This sets up an unresolvable tension for most of us, because we were also raised to be brave."
Read MoreSong lyrics and poetry often remind us that life is a journey to be enjoyed, not just a final destination. True, but what about the seasons when the path is arduous and the journey is nearly unbearable?
Read MoreAs you revel in the summer warmth (or wilt a bit, as we Oregonians tend to do), consider these words from Mary Oliver in her 2014 poem "The Sun":
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