Maryann Austin

A day or two ago, a friend was lamenting on facebook. It seemed that a "friend" of hers with different beliefs had "unfriended" her. Her situation struck a nerve with me. I had been in the same boat. And I shared her disbelief. The kneejerk reaction for each of us was something like this: How could they unfriend me for something like that? They share all kinds of things that I don't agree with and I wouldn't unfriend them. I have been through it a number of times in my life. It may not have always been on facebook. But it was the same scenario. There is a good explanation for why lopsided "friendship" happens and will continue to happen--and it may be of special importance for Christian people to know why. First, lets look at what the general population considers friendship to be. All you need do is look at the typical facebook share about friends. Friends are always there for you. They support you no matter what you decide to do. All tha...

There seems to be an epidemic of simplistic thinking these days.  And I don't mean that in a good way.  Today I witnessed the following situation in a retail store.  Two crotchety old men walk in and tell the clerk that they need a manual for a particular item that one purchased a couple of days before.  "My wife threw it away," one stated.  The clerk spent several minutes scouring the computer for a way to print a new manual for the man.  As she worked on a solution to the problem, the men had a loud conversation about how there is no consideration for customers these days.  Why can't "they" be more customer-oriented and stock extra manuals for just these situations?? I mean, people lose things all the time. A little while later I had a chance to ponder the exchange.  All I could do was shake my head.  Rather than take responsibility for his losing the manual, rather than thanking the sales clerk for trying to remedy his problem, he chose t...

Recently I met a young child who lost a sister to suicide. It was an incredibly sad experience for me. The family's pain was fresh and seemed to ooze off of them and onto all of us who were close by. Since that day a few weeks ago, I have seen several stories on tv about young children who took their own lives. Each of the children I learned about was a girl--a female child. I asked myself, "How could a beautiful and loved child not know her worth? How could she not know the value of her life?" Why would a beautiful child feel that her life is so worthless that she might as well end it? I guess the real question to ask is: Why not? What message is learned in a society which will "terminate" a "clump of cells" while in it's mother's womb? The public proclamation that abortion is merely a procedure has surely played a role in instilling in our children the worthlessness of life. A radical notion? Give it some thought.

     Admittedly, this isn't the cutest bunny in the world.  But it is not the ugliest either.  Some of you who have kids ages 6 and up through teens may know that this is Bonny.  Some may be surprised to know that this bunny, along with a few moderately weird friends strikes terror in children everywhere.  No, it's not the scared of clowns thing.  It's something entirely new and different.      Bonny is a feared character in the amazingly popular video game app called Five Nights at Freddy's.  I first saw it several months ago when my nephews were playing it on their ipads.  My 8 year old son was both intrigued and terrified.  What happens in this game is that the player sits alone in a dark room waiting.  Sound exciting?  It gets better (wink, wink).  Basically, the player is limited to only a few actions while waiting: open and close the doors to the room he is in, turn lights on and off, and look ...

     Babci (Bopchee: Polish for Grandma) lived with us until she passed away in 1984. I was 17 years old.  One of my sweetest memories of her is the way she decorated her Christmas tree each and every year.      Not sure where it ever went.  It seems like it disappeared around the time that she did.  But it was a small white plastic tree.  And every year she would break out her old cookie tins and dig inside.  Ribbons of every color she pulled out.  Her hands were old and arthritic, but faithfully did the work.      I wish I had a picture to post, but I can only describe what is so vivid in my memory.  A Christmas tree like no other I have seen.  Completely covered in colorful ribbons and bows.  Absolutely happy and charming and delightful.      And so, I guess I blame it on Babci that my tree is a hodgepodge of everything.  It is the one object that looks better and better ...

     Since the news is so upsetting, I don't watch a lot of it lately.  So I have to admit that I do not know the details on the recent accusations against Bill Cosby.  But I did see a clip of that interview with one of the "victims."  The interviewing journalist is being blasted by the public and the media for his "insensitivity" to the woman who says that in 1969 she was forced to perform oral activities on Cosby.  The journalist suggested to her that there are ways to avoid such a situation and mentioned the word teeth.  (I like members of the media who are not bullied into avoiding the obvious.) The woman's reply was (maybe paraphrasing here) that she was stoned.        At that point of the report, viewers are shown a clip of a rape victim advocate.  She boldly states that women under the influence of drugs or alcohol cannot legally give consent.  My questions would be: 1) If she was stoned, how reliable is her a...

My husband knew this man.  It’s been almost a year and a half since the man went home from work, put the barrel of a gun inside his mouth, and pulled the trigger.  There were a good number of people at his funeral, but it was quiet.  Very quiet.  Odd that the man’s widow did not shed a tear.  Well, maybe not so odd.  Their marital woes were not a secret.  It sickened me that she seemed almost jovial when the funeral had ended.   And yesterday I came across the name of a person I know of whose wife killed herself many years ago.  He had been cheating on her.  They had a young child.  I’m sure that he went on with his life like her death was her own choice.  And, ultimately, it was.  But I have to voice that there is an attitude and common belief today that rubs me the wrong way.  It is the philosophy of each person being responsible for his or her own happiness.  There is truth in the statement.  But it m...