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Solid ground

Qian Julie Wang, author of Beautiful Country, came to the United States in 1994 when she was seven years old. She often went to school hungry and was put in special education classes because she didn’t speak English. Eventually, she graduated from Yale Law School. Her mother was a professor who taught math and computer […]

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Reasonable?

Jane Austen writes: “How quick come the reasons for approving what we like!” Jane Austen is a wise woman.  I am going to read Persuasion again. –Joy

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Good company

I am watched the movie Persuasion—based on the book by Jane Austen, of course. The movie was delightful, and I am going to read the book again. Jane Austen writes: “My idea of good company…is the company of clever, well-informed people, who have a great deal of conversation; that is what I call good company.” […]

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A place of kindness, respect and love

I saw a sculpture of Ruby Bridges, the six-year-old who was the first Black to integrate an elementary school in the South, at the Dallas Arboretum. The bronze sculpture is part of the Great Contributors Collection now being displayed at the arboretum, and the collection includes eight new works by Gary Lee Price. On his […]

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Trust and fear

In the early 1970s, surveys showed that about half of the people in this country believed most people were trustworthy. By 2020, the number had fallen to less than one-third. And, many people who don’t trust others fear them. However, fear has to be justified by the circumstances, says Geoffrey Corn, chair of criminal law […]

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Happy flowers

I didn’t inherit my father’s green thumb, and I don’t have a yard full of flowers. However, I did buy an Easter lily, and it has a new flower that just appeared—almost a week after Easter.  And, the yellow roses I bought before Easter are still pretty. Whenever I see my store-bought flowers, I smile. […]

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Summer trips

Even though I am anticipating summer trips, I found this quote recently in a restaurant and realized how true it is. I can’t wait to go on a trip, and I know, too, I will be glad to return home. “A man (or woman!) travels the world over to find what he ( or she) […]

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A single drop

Manal Al-Sharif was put in prison in Saudi Arabia when she dared to drive in 2011. It was seven years later, in 2018, when women finally were allowed to drive in the country. As Manal Al-Sharif says in her book Daring to Drive, “The rain begins with a single drop.”

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Prostitution and pornography

In 2011, after Manal Al-Sharif was went to prison for driving in Saudi Arabia, the country’s highest religious council presented a report warning of the dire consequences if women were allowed to drive. Prostitution, pornography, homosexuality and divorce would “surge,” they declared. What’s more, “within 10 years, there would be no more virgins” in Saudi […]

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Daring to drive

It was 2011 when Manal Al-Sharif dared to drive. A woman driving wasn’t illegal in Saudi Arabia. One scholar Al Albani even suggested that in Muhammad’s time women could ride a donkey; so, why not drive a car? However, women driving was considered by many to be an assault on the country’s patriarchal culture. They […]

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