We may not see each other as God sees us, which can be very humbling By George Valadie Our youngest daughter recently moved back to Chattanooga and found an apartment downtown. We love to visit her and pretend we are cool. We take her to all the trendy places for …
Praying for perspective: Twelve minutes a day
That’s the average time a parent and child spend talking, and a parent regrets making it hard for his kids to share their feelings By George Valadie I can’t believe it, but I’ve just gotten started in my 58th year in the world of education. And though perhaps not diverse …
Praying for perspective: A priestly notion that’s ‘not ready for prime time’
Idea of ordaining married priests leads to unexpected discussion By George Valadie You can’t have two nicer weekends than we’ve had. The first was spent in Little Rock with all three of our daughters and their families. There was swimming, a cookout, and a lot of grandpa goofiness on the …
Praying for Perspective: ‘Common Sense Parenting’ class came too late
Raising children brings daily parenting decisions that are surely ‘in the manual we never got’ By George Valadie We Valadies have had the opportunity to live in three very different cities since the original two of us grew larger than that. One small, one midsize, one very large city. Each …
Praying for perspective: Carrying the cross
Do we share our personal stories or hide them away? By George Valadie It’s got to be about a month now at least, and it probably felt really good to get back to work. The holiday weekend seemed so long ago now; you know how it is. There’s all that …
Praying for Perpective: Being a ’90 percenter’ during Lent
This Lenten journey has been fairly successful, but sometimes during the season we cut deals with God and seek middle ground by George Valadie Baseball season is upon us. Bishop Richard F. Stika is a Cardinals fan; I’m all about the Braves. I hate to admit it, but of late …
Praying for perspective: Remembering the reason for the season
Making sure our Lenten sacrifices glorify God, not us, no matter how young or old we are By George Valadie The arrival of Ash Wednesday on March 1 means Lent is upon us and Easter soon will be here. I don’t know if it’s my imagination, but I think Lent …
Praying for Perspective: The man on the curb in front of the Krystal
A weekend visit to the fast-food eatery leads to fretting over the circumstances of a seemingly homeless person By George Valadie I love weekends, especially when our Friday night games have gone well and all the students have made it home safely. After these many years, with our girls now …
Praying for Perspective: Remembering the handing-out of report cards
By George Valadie You could tell we had just sent them out because the office phones were ringing incessantly. They always do on “report card” day. Technology has vastly changed how all that happens these days. Our teachers enter grades into a computer program, and magic does the rest. Parents …
Praying for Perspective: The Christmas story and common ground
The times may be different, but relating to Mary and Joseph is easier than you would think By George Valadie Season’s greetings! A year or so ago, when The East Tennessee Catholic and I began talking about writing this column, I had but one idea to offer and it was …
Praying for Perspective: Celebrating Notre Dame High School’s storied presence
By George Valadie Happy birthday, ol’ girl! We salute you. We salute your age, your impact, you unending and uplifting spirit. After all, who even gets to be 140 years old these days? Few institutions, traditions or inventions (think 8-tracks) — have that sort of life. Moreover, who or what leaves …
Praying for Perspective: Life’s like a bowl of cherries — pits and all
Coming to terms with what we want and what we really need as children of God By George Valadie I suppose this train of thought left the station while I was at a recent meeting of school principals. Our superintendent, a Sister of Mercy, had invited the 10 of us to …
