Terry Hershey Blog

Author Archives: terryhershey

Delight and Pennies

While a young mother waits at a post-office-counter, her four-year-old daughter occupies herself with the opportunity for self-entertainment, exploring the lobby, looking, prattling, not an item left untouched. The girl finds a penny on the floor.  “Look momma,” she says proudly, “a penny!”  Her mother, busy with a clerk at the window, mumbles an acknowledgment.  [...]

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Grace and a Conga Drum

The year is 1953. Eleven-year-old Mike is diligent about his paper route, setting aside money to buy the desire of his heart. His parents tell him that he can spend the money he earns on what ever he wants (as long as it isn’t illegal or immoral). Mike saves twenty dollars. From a working class [...]

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Remember

In the small Fannin County Hospital, local ministers take turns being chaplain for a week. Fred Craddock tells about one of his assigned weeks when a baby was born. It creates quite a stir, because not a lot of babies are born in a thirty-bed hospital. Fred writes, “I went there, about nine in the [...]

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Lagniappe

In the town of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, there is a church named Lagniappe (“lan-yap“). It is an old Creole word that means “something extra.” Pastor Jean Larroux explains, “Down here if you go into a seafood shop and order a pound of shrimp and they put in an extra handful, that’s the lagniappe. It’s [...]

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Secret of Life

This week I had an extra day in Washington DC. A perfect opportunity to literally “spend” a day. As I left the hotel, I told Mark, at the front desk, “I’m off to explore.” “Then do me a favor,” he said, smiling, “can you find me the secret of life?” “I’ll give it a shot,” [...]

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Blessed

In a memorable M*A*S*H* episode, there is a wounded bombardier who thinks he is Jesus.  The camp is mixed. Some say he’s crazy, most say he’s doing an act in order to get discharged from the Army. One person in camp believes him. Radar O’Reilly. It’s time for the man’s release. Radar walks out to [...]

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Unabashed

Like most small towns in America, summer brings a festival. (I know we are several weeks off from summer, but it never hurts to anticipate.) A weekend of festivity, gastronomic adventure and community identity. On Vashon Island we celebrate the Strawberry Festival. A long time ago, there were strawberry fields on our island. No more. [...]

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Pilgrimage

Today I walked across a bridge. The sun shines down from a bleached blue sky. The air may by cool, but our spirits don’t notice, as we stand and sing under the sign, Edmund Pettus Bridge. We are in Selma, Alabama on Bloody Sunday. And no, after today I will never be the same. I [...]

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Wide open arms

It’s already long past departure time.  I’m standing near the gate, waiting for the inbound passengers to deplane. There’s nowhere to go, and the plane will depart when it departs.  Even so, the passengers (including me) are beginning to huddle, as if our hovering will speed up the process.  We form a makeshift column, all of [...]

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Wonder

What is sacred is what is worthy of our reverence, what evokes awe and wonder in the human heart, and what, when contemplated, transforms us utterly. -Phil Cousineau Late in her life, American poet and writer May Sarton was questioned about what she wanted to be  when she “grew up.” She replied: to be human. I like [...]

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do less. live more.