Posts Categorized: Family

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Featured image for Understanding Ash Wednesday: From the Protestant Reformation to Mardi Gras - Image Source at https://i0.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/LENT-ScotkinnamanDOTcom.png?fit=291%2C173&ssl=1
I set out wanting to better understand a holiday that is celebrated in my own backyard, yet is one I know very little about: Ash Wednesday In the process I found myself thinking once again about the the churches I attended as a child and the neighborhoods I once lived in.  I spent a few… more »
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Featured image for Habari Gani: Happy Kwanzaa - Image Source at https://i0.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Kwanzaa.jpeg?fit=248%2C203&ssl=1
You’ve heard of Kwanzaa? I hadn’t until I moved to Philadelphia. Even then, what I thought I knew has turned out to be mistaken. So, what better opportunity might there be to learn about this rapidly growing American-founded holiday than to write a blog post? I loved what I discovered and I hope you will… more »
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Featured image for Happy Anniversary, Woody - Image Source at https://i0.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/16th-anniversary.jpg?fit=300%2C230&ssl=1
Today, October 10, marks our 25th anniversary. Not our wedding anniversary, that hits 19 today, and who celebrates 19?  Not us. But 25 years ago (yes, we chose our wedding date so we could keep celebrating the same date we’d been celebrating) Woody and I met face-to-face for the first time.  I remember it clearly.… more »
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Featured image for What’s Dangerous? Really? - Image Source at https://i0.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/11321002-business-man-balancing-on-the-rope-high-in-the-sky.jpg?fit=168%2C113&ssl=1
There’s been a lot of attention paid to fear lately. So, I got wondering just how we determine what is dangerous, what is to be feared. In social psychology the literature focuses on “risk” and how we perceive what is risky. Whatever you call it, when you feel afraid, how have you gotten there? How… more »
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Featured image for What Is Family? - Image Source at https://i1.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/family-of-choice.jpg?fit=300%2C300&ssl=1
At the end of last week’s blog post on World Population Day, if you recall, I wrote, “It’s a cultural thing.” Here’s what originally followed (before I deleted it): I know in many countries family is more extended, with multiple generations welcome under one roof. Not so here in the US.  Independence is our birthright (we… more »
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Featured image for World Population Day: What’s Your Take? - Image Source at https://i0.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/fam-2015.png?fit=300%2C259&ssl=1
My posting day coincides with World Population Day this week . We’ll look at the connection between population trends and poverty, explore the call for family planning — this year’s theme — and meet members of my personal contribution to the world’s population (who will be going home tomorrow). Three themes, one post. Can I… more »
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Featured image for Remembering David Vetter - Image Source at https://i0.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/David-Vetter-with-mother.jpg?fit=300%2C211&ssl=1
Do you remember the “boy in the bubble?” David Phillip Vetter was born in Houston, Texas on September 21, 1971. His story was often in the news throughout the 1970s for he was born with SCID, Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (pronounced “skid”) and was placed inside the first of many sealed environments — “bubbles” —… more »
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Featured image for Being Grandma - Image Source at https://i1.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/10400737_54077517711_1059714_n.jpg?fit=300%2C225&ssl=1
It’s an honorable role, grandmother. That’s how I see it. And this week, for the second time this summer, the role of grandma — Gramma Janet, to be specific —  is one I adopt with gusto. My older son Dave, is here this week with his two boys, Elijah, nearly 14, and Raleigh, 11. Here… more »
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Featured image for Happy Birthday, Dad - Image Source at https://i1.wp.com/janetgivens.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/dad-copy.jpeg?fit=251%2C298&ssl=1
My dad would have been 90 today, had he lived. The trouble is, I have few memories of my dad who died 61 years ago. The photo above is as surprising to me as it is to you.  How warm was the day? Who took the picture? And wherever were they standing, since it looks… more »
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