By MARIANNE WOOD Recently, a friend shared a long list of challenges from the past year. I know some of you could do likewise. I could, too. But while making lists of trials and disappointments can be cathartic, the optimist in me tries to live up to Greer Garson’s injunction to tilt the mirror up “toward the cheerful, the tender,

By MARIANNE WOOD Perhaps you know the sticky note story. These ubiquitous and often colorful bits of notepaper come in many shapes and sizes. Once, they were only pale yellow rectangles. Envisioned by 3M chemical engineer Art Fry in 1974 as his mind wandered during a sermon, Art was inspired to create the notes that would not leave a trace

By MARIANNE WOOD I feel moved every time I recall the Amish farmer in the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia one Thanksgiving week. He sold me ten deep red leather candy canes with bells held on brass rings. I gave the sets of bells to friends that year for Christmas. I love their tinkling sound and the memory that follows.

By MARIANNE WOOD Christians in the Visual Arts, or CIVA, held its biennial conference in Austin this past week with the theme “transcendence.” Since our calendars were clear and this event was nearby, my friend, Sue Wood (no relation), and I signed up and packed our bags. We went in need of artistic nourishment, inspiration, and a desire to deepen

By MARIANNE WOOD “Mimi, can I go to your house to help you and Pop look for Eddie?” Our granddaughter, age four, asked me this question as I drove her home from her preschool. I told her she’d have to ask her parents but that I (her Mimi and Pop-her grandad) would like that very much. She repeated her question

By MARIANNE WOOD Joan Didion is still at it. At age 86 (she’ll be 87 in December), her latest book, published this year, Let Me Tell You What I Mean, is a treasure for those of us who love to write and who love to read. I have enjoyed this book a lot, but I especially love this quote: “…a writer,

By MARIANNE WOOD Recently I had the privilege of meeting some fellow writers for the first time. In my impromptu remarks at our small gathering, I mangled a concept from the English crime writer and poet Dorothy Sayers. I want to set that straight (assuming you are reading) because the impact of her idea carries tremendous value for artists of

By MARIANNE WOOD The first thing you learn as students of the Latin dance Tango is to keep your knees bent. Our instructor, Sophia, taught that essential lesson to our ballroom dancing class about two months ago. She followed up with these steps: a corte and a sit-down. The first step advances; the second retreats. We then learned to promenade