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About Barbara
I’m Barbara Falconer Newhall and I’ve got a serious case of the human condition.
I’ve done it all: career, family, house, garden, and a prize-winning book, "Wrestling with God." The result: I'm a woman of years, lots of them, who can't help seeing things from the funny side.
Tucked away on this website are hundreds of riffs on life. I hope you’ll seek them out – and keep me company as I discover the humor, if not the meaning, in what life throws my way. Learn More
THE LATEST
Have Americans Forgotten That Humility is a Virtue?
Have Americans forgotten that humility is a virtue? A couple dozen Christians met at my church on Thursday for a reminder. Read more.
BARBARA’S BOOK
★ Publishers Weekly, starred review
Any seeker of any faith will be blessed to read the words of this fine author and observer. Read more.
An inveterate doubter for most of her adult life, journalist Barbara Falconer Newhall embarks upon a quest to find a way to believe in God in the twenty-first century.
The result is Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith, which details her search for the Divine in the lives of diverse Americans – from a fundamentalist Christian to a progressive Muslim to a Buddhist monk.Seekers of all persuasions will feel represented here, from priests, ministers, and rabbis to engineers, physicists, and avowed non-believers . . . a riverflow of a book. — Phil Cousineau, host of PBS’s Global Spirit
Recent Riffs on Life
Forget Those Charming Little Forget-Me-Nots. They’re Not as Innocent as They Seem
Forget those charming little forget-me-nots. They’re not as guileless as they look. They have an agenda. Read more.
I Confess. In 2020, I Washed the Potatoes. With Soap
It was April, 2020. The pandemic was underway and you couldn’t be too careful about what you let into your house, including your groceries. Which is why I washed the potatoes, with soap. Read more.
DON’T MISS!
Cathy Guisewite: I Can’t Wait to Spend Time With This Funny, Wise Lady
Cathy Guisewite, cartoonist and author of “Fifty Things That Aren’t My Fault,” writes the way I want to write: with humor and grace. Read more.
Is an Istanbul Trip Too Risky for You? Here’s What You’re Missing
Jon and I took the kids to Istanbul back in 2009. What we experienced was a energetic culture with a rich past, great food and beautiful people. Read more.
We Humans Are Ineffable
People are a little like God. You know who they are, but that “who” can’t be captured or summed up in words. We humans are ineffable. Read more.