MWR : Articles : Virginia Ham

Last updated March 09.

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Articles : Virginia Ham

The queen has left the throne

A ceramic pitcher with a Stangl design, sketched by my brother, J. Eric Bishop, appeared on the cover of the memorial service program above the Scripture verse, “Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her” (Prov. 31:29).

The image and words befit the late Ann Dayton Bishop, 88, whose life we gathered to commemorate. All five of her children have Stangl dinnerware in their homes. Anna and I have used Stangl plates, side dishes and coffee cups nearly every day over our 43 years of marriage.

In everything give thanks

And I think to myself, what a wonderful world. — Louis Armstrong (1963)

We live by faith

The keynote speaker for our annual faculty-staff conference was dishing out some heady stuff. The message was also disconcerting, if one agrees with his basic premise.

Memory box

The parcel sat in a corner of my office, taking up space and collecting dust. But I ignored it, until several weekends ago, when I finally inspected its contents.

42 years, why knot?

I was already feeling hesitant, but as Anna and I entered the gathering space at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community, the anxiety level really shot up.

Key to a legacy of learning

I thought: What an exemplary gesture in honor of one whose life touched so many, including a relative of mine who never met this man, the late C. Henry Smith.

This column’s under pressure

Stress — a single word that can pack a punch, rendering us weak and powerless.

The seat of the scornful?

I often wonder why people prefer the front of the bus, the middle of the road and the back of the church.

Parent-child roles reversed

Day by day, we are all on the same journey of aging, with certain events and experiences providing stark reminders of this reality.