Someone has suggested that the great poets of the past are writing song lyrics today. Whether that’s true or not I’ve found great inspiration from lyrics as well as poetry. There’s wisdom, theology and ideas to meditate over in many lyrics. This long post are examples of some that have meaningful ideas to consider. Past Glories When we find ourselves living in past accomplishments instead of considering each day a new gift to enjoy and use to grow, you should…
More than once we learn about the power of a bond of love between two people. Here are two reported cases involving such a bond between married couples. Both of these examples are from the state of Iowa. The first report is from July of last year about a husband and wife who had been married for 73 years and died within hours of each other in Garner, Iowa. Wanda Wold was born on March 24, 1925, in Merrill, Iowa,…
Today is the anniversary of the death of my father, Paul Nicholas Luvera Sr. He was born on March 25, 1898, he died in Anacortes, Washington on November 4, 1990 at the age of 92. I’ve published details of his extraordinary life many times. See https://paulluverajournalonline.com/weblog/2013/11/dad-1.html for a complete history of his life. Dad was born in Reggio Calabria, Italy, the son of Niccola and Fillippa Luvera. His father and oldest brother left for Canada where they worked for the…
My friend Anna Lynn, is in the process of studying to become a Deacon in the Episcopal Church, here in Pierce County. Part of the training involves writing and delivering sermons on selected topics. Her occupation is with Valet Parking, a transportation company in Tacoma. Her work with the company includes driving limos. For many years she has been our family’s driver when we need transportation. On our trips she has shared with me some of her sermon efforts for…
I keep a file with some thoughts and ideas I come across while reading or that I happen to reflect upon. Today I thought I would share these miscellaneous thoughts and observations for what it’s worth. There is no particular organization. Just some items from my file. Honesty I was reading a reflection on the subject of honesty. The article noted that, “A man may escape many things, but he cannot escape himself. He must live with his memories, and…
Carol Ann Ryan Luvera, the mother of our eight children, died last Friday evening September 16, 2022 in Mount Vernon, Washington at the care facility where she was a patient. The children had been keeping vigil after the doctor said she had only a day or so to live. She was in a coma. The children Michael, Elizabeth, Dan and Theresa were there when she died. Theresa was in the room at the time holding her mother’s hand. She reported…
At age 87 years, my memory of childhood is far from perfect, but some things stand out. I was reflecting on how blessed our family was for living along the shoreline of Guemes Channel and a childhood before summers were totally occupied by children’s commitments of their summer vacation time. These are a few memories I was reflecting upon that I’ll share. There is nothing profound here. Just pleasant thoughts that were significant to me. Anacortes Fish Canneries I was…
Donald Trump has had frightening success in his continuing campaign to make hypocrisy accepted and normal. What is hypocrisy? It comes from the Greek “hypocrisies” which means “acting on a stage” or “to play a part.” A hypocrite is a person who says one thing and does or believes another. Hypocrisy is just plain lying and being dishonest. The evil of being a hypocrite is that it can make hypocrisy look normal and acceptable. By normalizing hypocrisy, it makes it…
On August 8, 1953 my maternal grandmother, Marija Babarovich died in Anacortes, Washington at age 90. It was the year of my high school graduation at Anacortes. She was born September 21, 1863 in Splitska, Brac, Croatia. She was a woman of great courage, faith and personal sacrifice. Her husband, my grandfather, Peter, had died the year I was born in 1935 at Anacortes. He was born in 1861. I remember her vividly. A tall, erect woman with hair piled…
In an Email to the children, I described the two dance halls in the county that were popular when I was in high school. I thought later about the street dances in Anacortes. When I was working on the purse seine boats during high school, Anacortes had fishermen “pavement dances” on the weekends during the fishing season. The dances were on Commercial Avenue. They were popular and crowded with people. The fisherman returned from fishing on the weekend and the…
