How Catholics Help Build Western Civilization Picture a field of wildflowers growing in a pasture located in southern France. The year is 1830. A boy named Henri crawls through the field spying on a butterfly.  He watches with a keen eye as the butterfly lands on a flower and sips nectar. The boy’s name is Jean-Henri Fabre … Read moreJean-Henri Fabre (1823-1915)

Back in the olden days when I was a child, I walked to school. In fact, every day I walked twice to school. First, I walked to school (1/4 mile) then I walked home for lunch, then I walked back to school, then I walked home. No adult ever accompanied me. I was on my own to … Read moreAutumn in Maine

How Catholics Helped Build Western Civilization Nestled in the countryside twenty miles east of Paris, the Braille family lived a comfortable life. Simon-Rene, father of four young children, was a good provider, operating a leather shop on his land.  One day his three-year-old son, Louis, wandered into the workshop to play. He picked up a … Read moreThe Genius of Louis Braille (1809-1852)

Of a recent evening I gathered with friends round the campfire, praying, singing, and chatting. It was a pristine evening with the Milky Way smudged across the sky and a half-moon off to the east. Hidden in the grasses, crickets sang of summer ending.  I thought of a chapter in Charlotte’s Web. E.B. White described the … Read moreCricket Song

Recently I acquired a delightful little book entitled Fabre’s Book of Insects. Written by Jean Henri Fabre (1823-1915), it gives insights not only about insects, but into the man himself. Fabre is known for studying the habits of insects through direct observation. One biographer called him the Poet of Science which is a tribute to his … Read moreTo Squish a Squash Bug