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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
The Feminine Feminist — An Oxymoron?
By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment
The feminine feminist — is she a contradiction in terms? Can a woman wear pink to the boardroom? Inch-long fingernails to the track meet? 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?
To get your copy of this free downloadable PDF, enter your email below – and check your Inbox. Enjoy!
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Recent Riffs on Life
I’m Going on a — Homemade — Writer’s Retreat
By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment
I’m going on a homemade writer’s retreat. Just me and my laptop. No dental appointments. No lunches with friends. No Facebook. No Instagram. Read more.
It’s Spring and My Garden Looks Dreadful. Here’s Why
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 4 Comments
My garden looks dreadful. Here’s why. My plants won’t cooperate. The iris wants to be an iris. The azalea, an azalea. The poppy, a poppy. 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!
Widowed: Where’s My Lead Pony?
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 8 Comments
A lead pony is the seasoned horse who escorts a anxious racehorse to the gate, exerting a calming presence. I’m widowed. Where’s my lead pony? Read more.
I’m a Meat-Eating Loser – I Didn’t Win the New York Times Ethicist Contest
By Barbara Falconer Newhall Leave a Comment
I’m a meat-eating loser. I didn’t win the “Why It’s OK to Eat Meat” essay contest the New York Times Magazine put on a few weeks ago. But I’m OK with that. Read more.
The American Flag Is Flying in My Liberal, Elitist, San Francisco Bay Area Neighborhood Today. Here’s Why.
By Barbara Falconer Newhall 3 Comments
‘The right wingers don’t own the American flag flag,’ I said as my husband hung the Stars and Stripes from our garage. ‘It’s my flag too.’ Read more.