Worldly Stories

Take a Peek Inside Our Wonderful World of Stories
Bridge in Oregon

Welcome to Building Bridges Word by Word

Building Bridges Word by Word is a virtual book in progress – and you are its authors!

We invite you to write a short reflection on a saying, quote, song, or poem that has meaning in your life. By posting your stories side by side, Building Bridges Word by Word will reflect the rich diversity of our lives and illuminate what we may have in common, so that we can begin to discover what connects us.

Each story will be part of the bridge we are building together across our divides.

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She Hit Me, So I Hit Her First

Long ago, I was invited to Thanksgiving dinner in the home of a family with two lovely little girls. Both the meal and the company were excellent. The kids had been excused to go play, and some of the grownups were eying a second piece of pie, when suddenly one of the little girls yelped, ran into the room, and burst into tears.

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Vegan healthy cinnamon raisin roll buns, just baked.

About tomorrow…

About tomorrow… Written on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. Today is one of those Big Days. One of those dates that’s been stamped out in my

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Mystical light floods the forest floor as long sunrise shadows creep along the ground.

Namaste. The Light in Me Salutes the Light in You

I don’t know my yoga students well. Their work, their families, their passions, their struggles are mostly mysteries to me. When they walk into class our focus is the yoga. We pay attention to our poses, our bodies, and our breath and try to leave the rest outside.

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A man at the beach, standing lovingly holding a child in his arms, the child's arm is holding onto back of the man's arm

Building resilience

The pandemic was particularly hard on the mental health of adolescents. Their activities, plans, hopes and dreams were canceled or changed, and disappointment hit hard. Now many teenagers are depressed, angry, frustrated, confused and are falling deep into holes of anxiety, fear and futility.

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Sunrise in the distance, up above the trees, turning everything orange and red with heat

Beat the heat with summer songs

It’s the summer solstice. And right now, where many of us live, it’s hot.
I was thinking about finding some otherworldly music to mark the solstice. Something that would help lower our temperatures. But while looking for that kind of music, I stumbled on another kind.

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A beautiful, yet simple, wooden boat on the beach

It lies in the love of wood and grain 

Judy Sorum Brown’s poem, “Wooden Boats,” which on the surface is about the craft of boatmaking, turns beautifully in the third stanza to ask, “Is there within us each …?” By the final lines, it has us wondering if it might even be possible to transform the world

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Boy on swing, joyously swinging up into the air

Savoring each moment in life

Amy’s belief in savoring each moment of life and saying “yes to the voice that tells me I should go out and do something now, even when that decision seems wildly impractical” guided her throughout her life. This approach became even more important after her cancer diagnosis.

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Sometimes you need a sad song

I know very little about Heavy Metal Music. But after reading how Ryan Pfeil’s moving reflection and its connection to “Constance,” the song of the Canadian Progressive Metalband Spritibox, I wanted to learn more.

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Curtained window with light of sunset and dim view of leafed out trees showing through thin curtains

Were it not for shadows

This past year, I turned 70, published my first collection of short stories, and lost my eldest brother to cancer. These events left me feeling as if I am only now beginning to know who I am.
Sometimes, the most difficult emotions can reveal things we could not know any other way.

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