The Narthex
A Line, Not a Cycle
Fall is a time of hope, rooted in responsibility to make good use of one's days
By John M. Grondelski | September 26th 2025 11:55 AMFall arrived this week, precisely on Monday at 2:19 p.m. Another year is slowly bending towards its end. I’ll admit fall is my favorite season. For me, the year goes downhill from May until about early October. (I used to say September in my native New Jersey, but I'm currently…
READ FULL BLOG POSTThe Final Quarter (and Not in Football)
Let's ask, with the proverb, whether we’ve grown a year older but none the wiser
By John M. Grondelski | September 30th 2024 9:23 PMOctober 1 marks the start of the fourth and final quarter of 2024. In 90 days, we will be celebrating New Year’s Day and making “resolutions.” It’s your last chance to consider what you did with last year’s resolutions. I’ve tried this year to flag the passage of the quarters…
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 POSTHunter's Moon
The second full moon of autumn is a testament to God’s Providence
By John M. Grondelski | October 27th 2023 1:45 PMSaturday, October 28 is the second full moon of autumn which, by tradition, has in the United States been called “Hunter’s Moon.” (The first full moon is called “Harvest Moon”). The name comes from the fact that, in earlier times when food was found in field and forest, hunters would…
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