Marginalia
I was hoping to start this month off with a playful take on my love for medieval, Illuminated manuscripts, and specifically the “marginalia” you find within them — the colorful, but hidden figures obscured in the great texts of history. But as I’m writing this, rockets are being fired on the innocent people of Ukraine. And after nearly three years of daily, suffocating death at the hands of Covid, we are confronted with even more lives being taken.
‘How Can You Work for Those People?’
As a federal public defender, Neil was often asked why he was so committed to serving people who had been accused of terrible things. His story reveals the unique way this role put him in a position to affirm human dignity.
Good and Decent S2|E8: Backstrokes and Headspins
The Surprising Way Self-Care and Service are Linked
Reconnecting Through Colors
A Letter to Say ‘Thanks’ to the Workers Building Skyscrapers
The Commencement Address We Can’t Stop Thinking About
Are You Building Your Life Around the Wrong Expectations?
You Have 4,000 Weeks to Live — How Are You Spending Them?
3 Ways Tolkien’s Stories Point Us to a Good Life
How Jon Batiste’s Music Can Help Us ‘Hold On To the Light’
How Self-Care Can ‘Sharpen Your Saw’
Is Your Team Pulling Apart? Here’s the Key to Working Together
Developing Your Listening Skills Can Be a Game-Changer
Making Friends After College Can Feel Impossible — These 4 Tips Can Help
Friends are the secret sauce of adult life. So how do we identify and cultivate meaningful and supportive friendships?
3 Ways to Make Lent Less About Dieting and More About God
Lenten fasting is a way to fight selfishness and be in solidarity with those who suffer, but it’s all too easy to see it as a holy form of punishment. Here’s how you can stay on track with your Lenten observance this year.
Storytime with Mr. Stephen — For The Joy of Reading
Stephen Noble is an advocate for children’s literacy. He created a YouTube channel called “Storytime with Mr. Stephen” to get more kids to read and love books.
Learning to Say ‘God is Love’ When You’re Gay
If you’re an LGBT person who was raised Christian, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ve never heard a leader in your church welcome people like you. Eve Tushnet is here to change that, and remind you that God loves you unconditionally.
When Your Life is in Ruins, Simple Companionship is Such a Gift
Shemaiah’s world fell apart when her fiancée left unexpectedly. A simple gesture from a work colleague was enough to help her return from the margins of grief.
She Heard a Calling to Help Immigrants Find Dignity — ‘It Was So Clear’
Meet Joanna Williams — she took a semester off of college for an unusual “study abroad” experience: volunteering to serve migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. The people she met there changed her life.
Can Poetry Teach Us to Love the World — Even When It’s So Broken?
Chris is a Montana writer who has been teaching poetry to fourth-graders on the Flathead Reservation. Read what he learned from them in the process (and dig their amazing poetry!) here.
Good and Decent S2|E5: Going to the Margins
In this episode of our podcast, we speak with a reporter who documented heartbreaking and grace-filled stories from the history of the AIDS crisis and the Catholic Church.
‘Free Room for You’ — A Grotto Short Film
We sent a filmmaker to spend three days with a TikTok personality who also happens to run a New Jersey roadside motel. Don’t miss seeing the stories he tells — and the lives he changes — from his small corner of the world. The film premieres tomorrow — catch the trailer here.
The Fearlessness of St. Oscar Romero | #GrottoMusic
St. Oscar Romero spent much of his life quietly on the sidelines — he stayed in his lane. At a turning point in his life, God called him to be a voice for those on the margins, and he responded with courage — even in the face of death. This playlist captures that fearlessness.
The Small Art Stuck in this War
About a month ago, Javi ordered a few small paintings from Etsy — they were landscapes created by an artist in Ukraine. When they didn’t arrive after the invasion began, the gap between Kiev and Indiana suddenly became really small.
