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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
Widowed: He’s Pushing Up a Daisy
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments
I checked in on Jon the other day and I found him right where we’d buried him. He was pushing up a daisy. Just one. Read more.
New! Get Barbara’s Special Gift
Wondering how that kid of yours will turn out?
Take heart. They might surprise you. My daughter did!
I tell that story in this free Special Edition, Was our daughter headed for the dark side?
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Recent Riffs on Life
Sheltering at Home Revisited: The Virus Arrives
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments
Sheltering at home revisited: The virus arrives, the shutdowns go into effect, and we find out how much our “mere” acquaintances mean to us. Read more.
Widowed: The One Good Thing About Grief
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 1 Comment
The one good thing about grief is — there’s not a darned thing you can do about it. Someone has died, and that’s that. 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
DON’T MISS!
The Writing Room: Writing Tips from Jasmin Darznik of “Good Daughter” Fame
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 1 Comment
Writing tips from Jasmin Darznik: “The big lie of memoir is that the story ends.” Read more.
For Wetter, For Drier — I’m Married to California
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 8 Comments
Basically, there are two kinds of Californian. Those who are delighted by a sunny February day. And those who are dismayed. Jon is one of the latter. You can chart the weather by Jon’s moods. Read more.
Breathing Lake Michigan — Ludington to Traverse City
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 2 Comments
Traveling solo along Lake Michigan meant I could linger over coffee with friends. It also meant I could ignore my GPS and exit the freeway on a whim. Read more.