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Barbara Falconer Newhall

Veteran journalist Barbara Falconer Newhall riffs on life as she knows it.

  • A CASE OF THE HUMAN CONDITION
  • MY EVER-CHANGING FAMILY
  • WRITING & READING
  • MY ROCKY SPIRITUAL JOURNEY
  • WIDOWED
  • FUNNY BUTTON

My Rocky Spiritual Journey

You don't have to be a big believer to find something interesting to read here . . . You'll find excerpts from the spiritual journeys of people I've met on the religion beat as well as reports of my own fraught encounters with religion and spirituality . . . as well as updates on my book, "Wrestling with God: Stories of Doubt and Faith," from Patheos Press.

A Meditation for Holy Week: An Afterlife Where Time Does Not Exist?

April 8, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

an-afterlife-where-time-does-not-exist Lisbon-cathedral-crucified-christ

Eternal life? That’s got to be boring as hell. How about an afterlife where time does not exist, that’s outside of time as we know it?  Read more.

People Don’t Die Anymore — They Pass

March 3, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

people don't die anymore they pass. this grandfather died a few years after helping his grandchild with her shoes

People don’t die anymore — they “pass.” Otherwise sophisticated, hard-headed people are resorting to euphemisms when the subject is death.  Read more.

Widowed: John Donne, Meet Leonard Cohen — And Send Us a Song, Please, From the Mystery Beyond

February 11, 2023 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

leonard-cohen-documentary

I’ve spent evenings with songwriter Leonard Cohen and gone to bed with poet John Donne. I want to say, ‘John Donne, meet Leonard Cohen.’ Read more.

May Your Days Be Merry!

December 24, 2022 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

may-your-days-be-merry

On my Christmas card this year, “May your days be merry,” is code for — may your days be filled with hope and faith.  Read more.

Widowed: I Got Caught in the Act of Crying for My Husband

December 17, 2022 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

empty-home-office

I came home to what I thought was an empty house but, widowed, I got caught in the act of crying for my husband. Noisily.  Read more.

Widowed: ‘Let Us Tend Our Garden’

November 12, 2022 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

let-us-tend-our-garden pussy-paws-plant-california

Translating Voltaire for my backyard: “We must cultivate our garden,” feels bossy and rife with certitude. I prefer, “Let us tend our garden.”  Read more.

How to Describe My Late Husband? I Can’t Find the Words

October 29, 2022 By Barbara Falconer Newhall

2017-eclipse-of-the-sun

How to describe my late husband? I can tell the Jon stories, but when it comes to evoking the singularity that was Jon, words fail. Read more.

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LET’S CONNECT

ON THE FUNNY SIDE

Cathy Guisewite: I Can’t Wait to Spend Time With This Funny, Wise Lady

cartoonist Cathy Guisewite's new book, "Fifty Thing That Aren't My Fault," arrived in my mailbox yesterday. Can't wait to read it. Photo by Barbara Newhall

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.

MORE "ON THE FUNNY SIDE"

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  • A Case of the Human Condition
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TO MY READERS

Please feel free to share links to my posts with one and all and to quote briefly from them in your own writing, remembering, of course, to attribute the quote to me and to provide a link back to this site.

My Oakland Tribune columns, btw, are reprinted by permission of the Trib. With the exception of review copies of books, I do not accept ads or freebies of any kind. Click on the "Contact" button if you have questions. Enjoy!

 

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8-year-old-girl-living-out-her-fantasies-as-a-swordswoman

Barbie — Sex Object or Blank Slate?

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Barbara Falconer Newhall's next book, she hopes, will include columns she wrote for a local newspaper back in the 1980s. Photo by Barbara Newhall

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the politics of houseork. a man is working in the kithcen. Photo by barbara newhall

The Politics of Housework, Revisited

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