The Fear Beneath Our Sympathy When people we love experience a health crisis, we feel the impact ourselves. Not physically, but emotionally...quietly and deeply. Lately I’ve found myself dwelling on the difference between feeling sorry for someone and fearing the possibility of losing them. Those two emotions live in very different places to me. Recent …
Category: General Posts
Prayer Circle Request
Friends, I’m reaching out to ask for your support in forming a prayer circle. For those unfamiliar, a prayer circle is simply a group of people gathering collectively or virtually, to pray, in whatever fashion fits you personally, for a common purpose. I’m asking for your prayers for a close friend and Marine brother, Steve. …
Daily Dose, 24 February 2026
Daily Dose – February 24, 2026 The Wealth I Carry: I carry a wallet with me every day. Inside are credit cards and a mixture of fives, tens, and twenties. I don’t know exactly how much is in there, how long it’s been that amount, or when I last used any of it. What I …
Holding Hands
Hearts Resting Safely In Willing Hands... I once heard a wedding vow that gave me pause …it was: “For as long as you want me… I’m yours.”― Kahlen Aymes At first, it sounded simple. Almost casual. But the more I sat with it, the more it settled over me like still water, calm, clear, undisturbed. It …
In My Heaven
What's in your Heaven? In my heaven, the small losses of time are returned quietly, without announcement. My hearing sharpens, not just to sound, but to nuance. My eyesight clears, not only to see, but to notice. My knees don’t ache, my memory doesn’t hide things from me, and whatever hair I’ve misplaced along the …
Lowell’s Boat Shop
By The Bowlegged Blogger Weathered Beauty I attended a Holiday Open House at Lowell's Boat Shop and Museum in Amesbury Ma. yesterday. After decades of passing by this place, I finally took the opportunity to feed my curiosity. Established in 1793, Lowell’s Boat Shop is the oldest continuously operating boat shop in the United States …
The Women Who Taught Me How To Tell A Story
By The Bowlegged Blogger ⸻ Every now and then, a reader of my blog reaches out with a kind word about my story telling. I treasure these messages more than folks might imagine. But recently, a classmate, friend and subscriber asked a question that caused me to pause and reflect: “Donnie, Who taught you how …
Continue reading The Women Who Taught Me How To Tell A Story
In Memory of Tom Chatten
Sad End To An Era..... There are some people who enter your life quietly, and there are others who show up like a burst of lightning ….loud, bright, impossible to ignore. That was my friend Tom Legend Chatten.Tom Chatten was never a quiet arrival. He didn’t just walk into a room; he announced himself. …
Signs Along the River
“This isn’t a political reflection. It’s a story about recognizing the moment when ego loosens its grip on the shifter and the soul takes the handlebars.” I took a cold weather bike ride along the Merrimack River today, bundled up and feeling good to be back on familiar roads. Amesbury, Newburyport, West Newbury, and Merrimack …
Windows of Opportunity: Lessons Learned
Old Lessons - New Challenges For most of my working life, I lived in the rhythm of management ... people management and change management. One was about building relationships, the other about guiding transformation. Both demanded patience, awareness, and the ability to read between the lines of what people said and what they felt. As …
November 10th – Happy 250th Birthday Marines
"There is no better friend, no worse enemy than a United States Marine"
The Handshake Dance
The Handshake I’ve been thinking about handshakes lately, how something so ordinary can change the way two people meet each other. It’s easy to dismiss a handshake as old-fashioned or merely polite, but I’ve come to realize it’s more than a gesture. It’s a kind of body language that can center us, level us, or …
Calorie Counting Crows…
A Murder of Crows… and My Coffee Cake Confession Over the past few days, I’ve been deeply committed to the noble art of doing absolutely nothing. Sure, I’ve done a few small chores here and there and convinced myself that “researching” and “writing” while eating pastry counts as productivity. Most would say I'm putting the …
Tricks old dogs can learn
There are some things we learn from books and there are things life teaches us. One can assume is that the longer you live the more you'll learn. But, can you teach an old dog a new trick? I believe the answer is yes....we old dogs can learn new tricks....well, some of us. With age …
A Still Boat
Note For years, I written The Bowlegged Blogger... writing about motion. The rhythm of swimming, biking, running, and finding myself through movement. But lately, the miles have slowed (thanks to a new hip and cranky knees), and life's lessons have taken on a different effort. I used to measure myself by distance and time; now …
Where Does Faith Begin?
“Faith doesn’t always begin with certainty. Sometimes it starts as a spark, a whisper, or a quiet moment of reflection. The Charcuterie Board of Faith Something is stirring in our country. After years of politics dominating our conversation, I sense more and more people turning their attention back toward faith. Some are returning to beliefs …
Daily Devotional – September 19, 2025
Daily Devotional – September 19, 2025 Theme: Joy in the Small Things Reflection: Joy isn’t always found in grand moments, it often hides in the small, ordinary gifts: a smile, a breeze, a kind word. When we slow down, we see that joy is already near..... Intention: Welcome the small joys of my morning coffee today. Coffee: with a …
Sept 18th
Daily Devotional – September 18, 2025 Strength in Stillness True strength is not always shown through athletic ability. It is often found in the quiet space where we pause, breathe, and reset. Stillness can bring clarity to our thoughts and allows us to move forward with purpose. Today’s Focus: May I find strength not only …
Charlie Kirk
As our nation approaches its 250th year, the shooting death of Charlie Kirk a public figure at a university, a place meant for argument, learning, and the clash of ideas, cuts to the core of who we are becoming as a people. If an advocate for public debate, religious beliefs and constitutional principles can be …
Fluffy Chowda
Fluffy Chowder: New England Tradition with a Decadent Lift If classic New England clam chowder is a beloved sea captain, then Fluffy Chowder is the captain’s flamboyant cousin who shows up in a chartreuse silk bathing suit and orders Dom Pérignon Vintage 2013 with his lunch. This chowder starts with a rich, creamy clam chowder …
Mind Prober
Talking to myself always ends up with us both laughing ..... Are you at all curious what others think about you? I think most people are.... Even the most “narcissistic” people among us—those with an inflated sense of self-importance—must wonder at times what others really think of them. It’s part of being human isn't it? …
Exiting Staged Right
How Donna Malenchini Turned Our Home Sale Into a Showcase For years, we watched with curiosity and admiration as our neighbor Donna Malenchini tirelessly moved furniture and decor in and out of her two-bay garage. At first, we didn’t fully understand the purpose behind all that activity. Over time, we learned she was a boutique …
Give your eyes a rub
Abby is off to the beach with her friend Julie and I've been listening to meditative music and observing Lanai time. I can feel the warmth of the sun helping me relax after a morning run. Lying still, eyes closed, I'm witnessing steams of color in waves that move upward. No I'm not on mushrooms, …
Mission- Hurricane Helene
BAPTIST ON MISSION - BURNSVILLE, NCI've often heard that people who dedicate themselves to serving others often experience deep personal growth, fulfillment, and a sense of purpose. I now know personally that those who renew others in need, will be renewed. I've learned that service can take many forms—whether through acts of kindness, professional roles, …
Is Elon a Tony?
The other day, I lost my cell phone at the golf range. Now, normally, this wouldn’t be cause for immediate panic, but let’s be honest—our phones are basically lifelines. Mine connects to everything: hearing aids, airlines, golf scores, email, blog posts… I might as well be missing a limb. I did the logical thing first—searched …
The Bow Legged Blogger 