Category: From the Editor

The month of October is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the colors, cooler weather, and the hustle and bustle of fall festivals and chili cook-offs. Though I’ve never had much affinity for Halloween’s secular festivities—especially the gory décor that accompanies it—I do have an attic...

I recently experienced one of the greatest joys of motherhood thus far: being present—completely and fully present— for my eldest daughter’s big day! Her husband is loyal, hard-working, and unfeigned; he loves her unreservedly. What more could a mother ask for? I knew he was committed when he readily accepted...

Several months ago, my husband had both knees replaced. The after-surgery care and commitment were more challenging than either of us could have imagined. I likened it to bringing home a newborn from the hospital. Constant attention was required; the tiniest detail made a substantial difference. I quickly learned to...

This year has flown by! Summer begins in June, the halfway mark of our publishing year, and we need to call out to you, our readers. Last year, we initiated the first Liguorian Readers’ Choice Awards, and we’d like to continue the tradition. We understand life is busy, so we’re...

A variation on that old adage, “You are what you eat,” is a line I heard on a recent podcast: “You are what you think.” English philosopher James Allen wrote this: “As a man thinks, so he is; as he continues to think, so he remains.”  Perhaps this truth resonated so...

The eleventh day of March marks two full years since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global pandemic. I am stunned by this reality. Still. And what’s more shocking, in my opinion, is that we, as a nation, don’t have a better handle on the situation.  Near the end...

As a bonus mom to a just-teen (thirteen) and soon-to-be-teen (eleven), my linguistic knowledge expands constantly. Thank goodness for four more children in their early to mid-twenties who are much more in tune with trendy jargon than I am. They often save me from being completely discombobulated.  I think the...

Each new year begins with plenty of words of wisdom (or warning). We encounter change daily, yet for some reason when we shift into January, we feel the need to admonish ourselves…and others. Example: an online search for “New Year’s advice” produced 154 million results! We’re familiar with eat better,...

During a “girls’ day” shopping trip—as we dug through trinkets and treasures—one of the women expressed her fear of gnomes. I could tell by her reaction to our curiosity that her distress was genuine. What disturbs me the most, she said, is “sometimes you can’t see their eyes!” I learned...

I’ve told my oldest daughter, Katelyn, many times, “your sister coming along so soon after you (eleven months) is the best thing that ever happened to you.” I say that because I was so enamored with my first bundle of joy that I dressed her up—even when we were staying...

At the end of my September column, I said I was “stepping down” from the soapbox from which I opposed vaccine incentives and people who shirk individual responsibility. But I’m back on that soapbox because of news that some states are offering COVID-19 vaccination incentives to help settle court fines....

All of us climb on our soapbox to express a viewpoint we feel passionate about. “Responsibility” in all forms—personal, moral, and social—to name a few—gets me on my soapbox. It’s a trait sorely lacking in society today, in my opinion. Case in point, COVID-19 vaccine incentives. I’m not talking about...

A popular adage attributed to John Lydgate, a fifteenth-century monk and a prolific English poet, could be a helpful life lesson: “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the...

My paternal grandmother was very dear to me. Many things contributed to our bond: I was named after her, she was the closest woman I had to a mother as I grew up, and she introduced me to the Catholic faith. She didn’t drive, and my grandfather—who did drive—passed away...

Typically at this time every year, I am preparing to attend the annual Catholic Media Association Conference. It’s a time to mingle with and learn from colleagues and be inspired by speakers, educational sessions, and the awards program, where I learn if any of the previous year’s Liguorian content has...

This month marks a full year since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. Many, myself included, never would have predicted that this virus would still be a topic of international concern today. Yet here we are, more than halfway through a new school year with parents...

When my girls were younger, I established rules for when they would be paid for successfully finishing a particular chore. I never favored a “no obligations” allowance, so they understood that money they acquired from me in their youth would have to be earned. I classified some chores as their...

As we limp from the upheaval and uncertainty of 2020 and tip-toe carefully into 2021, do you think we should dub the first full year of COVID-19 as the worst twelve-month span of time in US history? Or is the pandemic going to get worse? In an article published in...

Navigating a relationship without effective communication is like trying to steer a sailboat with a torn sail, a damaged rudder, and no wind. The result is little to no progression, frustration, and fear. Poor communication exacerbates relationship problems and lessens the likelihood of success for everyone involved. While we may...

Liguorian published an article on voting in September titled “The Faithful Vote: Taking a well-informed con-science to the polls.” In the past couple of months, this article generated more letters, emails, and voicemails than all our content from the past two years combined—the equivalent of about 120 columns and eighty...