Three years ago, I was lucky enough to visit the the most famous art museum in St. Petersburg, Russia — the Hermitage — housed in what was formerly the Winter Palace. It was just as much a monument to beauty as you might expect, except for one thing. Something that rather tarnished the experience overall, … Read more
In October 2015, while living and teaching abroad in Siberia, I had an extraordinary dream. I was attending Mass in a large hall with both Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic believers. During the Mass, I was talking to the Orthodox about the differences between Orthodoxy and Catholicism, when suddenly I realized that while talking I had missed … Read more
Recently, my Russian tutor had me read this snippet from Russian Modernist poet Nikolay Zabolotsky: … что есть красота и почему её обожествляют люди? Сосуд она, в котором пустота, или огонь, мерцающий в сосуде? Or, loosely translated: … what is beauty and why do we worship it? Is it a vessel for emptiness, or a fire in a vessel, … Read more
There may have been snow flurries on May 2, but anyway it’s a fact — spring has come to Novosibirsk! The days are long, the trees full of pods and young leaves. New things are popping up all around, from baby birds in the bushes (I saw one the other day) to new menus in the cafes. As … Read more
It’s no joke to say that poetry keeps us alive. I suppose you could say the same of any beautiful thing — or, to be more precise, any truly beautiful thing. That could be art, music, Creation, or simply a smile. Beauty is part of what makes life worth living. It can lift the soul and give it … Read more