By NANCY PATRICK Loneliness, a sense of isolation, shattered dreams, doubtful purpose, fear, boredom, insecurity—these feelings have affected most Americans even before the COVID-19 pandemic. We can multiply those feelings in the midst of a prolonged quarantine with its accompanying restrictions. Many people distrust authorities because some of the authorities disagree among themselves. All of this upheaval occurs while the
Read moreEditor’s Note: Nancy Patrick is a regular contributor to Spirit of Abilene. Her columns usually carry weight, but she recently posted the following “Lessons Learned,” with both insight and humor, on Facebook. Read and enjoy. Lessons learned from COVID-19 quarantine from Nancy Patrick 1. I know there is no one I had rather been quarantined with than my sweet husband
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK Not often heard today, the word “integrity” has disappeared from most people’s vocabulary. Everyone seems to know what courage, honesty, sincerity, responsibility, and reliability mean; however, the word “integrity” seems even more abstract than those qualities. Definitions of the word include “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness; the state of wholeness
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK In case you hadn’t noticed, “smart” stuff surrounds us: phones, homes, classrooms, cars, and even a little contraption called Alexa. We can give her commands such as “set the timer for 20 minutes” or “play (song) for me.” I usually forget Alexa sits right there on a table in my den and opt to set my kitchen
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I often wonder what will happen if I ever run out of things to write about. Not only does writing provide my primary form of expression, but it also serves as cheap therapy for all my neuroses. Those result from my brain’s constant thinking and fretting about national and international conditions I fear I cannot impact. My
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK I don’t listen to a lot of music other than church songs or selections my friends recommend to me. However, my son recently said I had to listen to a song entitled “We Americans” by the Avett Brothers, a folk-rock group from North Carolina. I had heard of neither the song nor the artists, so I had
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK As I recently sifted out some old and unneeded files, I found a document that really pleased me. Evidently, one of my Abilene High School seniors from the 2002-2003 school year had asked me to participate in a graduation project required by one of her other teachers. Although I didn’t remember this project, my introductory comments for
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK Many people have suffered from boredom and lethargy during the COVID-19 quarantine. My husband, Mike, and I, both retired for several years, had already adjusted our schedules for more home time than younger families who suddenly had to miss work and school. With the time and limitations associated with social restrictions, we undertook a major DIY project
Read moreBy NANCY PATRICK As a young mother with a thirteen-month-old baby boy, I lived in northern Illinois with my pastor-husband and our infant son. Other than the first five years of my life spent in my birthplace of Arkansas, I had never lived outside Texas, my adopted home state. Adjusting to my role as a new mother, a first-time pastor’s
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