The Narthex
On Squirrels & Readiness
It is not the Bridegroom's duty to accommodate the bridesmaids; it was theirs to be ready
By John M. Grondelski | November 9th 2023 12:44 PMThis morning I left for work a little after the sun had risen -- not unusual with days shorter and clocks turned back one hour. As I walked across my parking lot, a couple of squirrels were busy on the old oak tree, about whose acorns pelting my window pane…
READ FULL BLOG POSTFalling Leaves & Acorns
Death may come quietly, like the falling leaf, or it may come loud and jolting
By John M. Grondelski | November 3rd 2023 11:37 AMNat King Cole sang about “the falling leaves [that] drift by the window/the autumn leaves of red and gold.” Drifting autumn leaves suggest a quiet, peaceful sweep outside one’s casement. Last weekend was anything but. Fall was at its peak in Virginia and Saturday was a gloriously sunny day. As…
READ FULL BLOG POSTPerennial Politicians & the Temptation of Power
One's failure to recognize he is not a demigod makes him blind to wisdom
By John M. Grondelski | October 13th 2023 12:03 PMIn the wake of California Senator Dianne Feinstein's burial, op-ed writers have been scribbling away on why America’s leadership class is so dominated by octogenarians (with a few septuagenarians as junior officers). Writing in The New York Times (Oct. 8), David French picked up Ross Douthat’s most recent hobby horse:…
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