As all men are created equal, so too, all men are created good. The next fact to follow is that too many good people make bad decisions. It started with Adam and Eve and will continue. That is a fact. With those facts in mind, we continue to survive – possibly thrive – as the …
Category Archives: Awe and Wonder
A Prayer Answered
On our desert farm, no day passes without learning more about the land and about ourselves. The list of things that must be done every day is long, repetitive, and unavoidable. After reading eight Wendell Berry fictionalized accounts of his imaginary small, rural, and agricultural community of Port William, Kentucky from the early to mid-20th …
I Dream of Flying
You may recall last February, I befriended Pat Easton, a lady in England who reached out to me regarding my 2010 book The Hamsa. I wrote about the experience – A Light in the Heart of Darkness – on “E.S. Kraay Online,” the sister website to this, my Vitruvian man website. Over the weekend, I …
The Important Thing
I read my first Wendell Berry book – Nathan Coulter – in 2018. Published in 1960, it is the first of Mr. Berry’s acclaimed Port William books set in the imaginary Kentucky town he created to tell his stories. Mr. Berry was 26-years old when he wrote the book. He was 84-years old, and I …
Growing Tomatoes in Arizona
Growing tomatoes in Arizona is challenging, but easier – though I can’t be certain – than growing tomatoes in Nome, Alaska. Over a year ago, Dwight and I spread a thin layer of wood chips – he calls them compost, but to me, they are wood chips – over the acre or so we are …
Facing Difficult Times
Everyone faces difficulties and challenges that often seem insurmountable… challenges that drop us helplessly to our knees. During those times, we have only two choices. Rise up, or stay down. I choose to face difficult situations. Prayer and meditation are my tools to rise up. For that very reason, our home page encourages readers to …
RISEN
Reflection
This is the time of the year when many people of many faiths attune themselves to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, what Catholics refer to as the three pillars of Lent. Regardless of your religious and spiritual persuasion, this is a time when each of us can reflect upon exactly what it is that we do …
Kale
From the day I returned to the desert in 2019, my friend Dwight has encouraged me to grow vegetables in my small, residential backyard. Mrs. tVM and I set up a 3’x8’ plot last summer and planted tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. The plants grew and blossomed but never produced fruit. We were confused until Dwight’s …
Learning Patience
I was not born a patient man. Two things have helped me improve my patience in recent years: my dog Clarence and agriculture. Clarence’s curiosity and playfulness combined with his great strength make him a handful, but I learned much from his trainer, Becca with K9 Offleash Training in Minneapolis. Through four hours of training, …