Tag archives: St. Francis

I first learned of the Blessing of the Animals when we lived in Spain. My daughter, Kim, came home one day and said, “We need to take Alegria (her horse) to the Blessing of the Animals.” Really? Okay! And that was the beginning of St. Francis in my life. Even though I heard he began […]

Note to Readers: In 2007, when I wrote about the 1918 Spanish Flu Epidemic in Santa Barbara, I never thought its story would ever be timely and relevant to today. I am sorry to have been wrong. I offer it again for your curiosity, instruction, and hope. They got through it then, and we’ll get […]

As the holiday season winds down it reminds me of when we lived in Naples, Italy with our four-year-old daughter Kim and baby son Dane. At Christmas time many families put up a crèche in their homes but these were extra charming. Some would be an entire Italian village with tiny houses, markets, villagers at […]