What do thresholds have to do with anything?

You may be wondering why this blog is named Postcards from the Threshold.

The postcards part is easy: I anticipate short posts with lots of photos, kind of like the postcards your grandma sent you when she went on vacation.

The notion of threshold, on the other hand, comes from my master’s thesis, which explored the spiritual practices that are helpful in times of transition. Research by William Bridges in the book Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes suggests that transitions follow a predictable pattern: an ending followed by a beginning with a time of chaos in between. That time of chaos is like standing on the threshold before entering or leaving a room: We’re no longer here, but not yet there.

Transitions, or threshold-times as I think of them, can be welcome or unwelcome, joyous or sorrowful, bidden or unbidden. This blog comes to you from a threshold time in my life: what the heck do I do now that I have finished the thesis and earned the master’s degree?

Once we’re past the throat-clearing introductory posts, you’ll see lots of photos from Spain as I walk the Camino de Santiago’s French route. But you might see some poetry and some reflections on psalms as well as posts that have nothing to do with transitions, travel or faith.

Thanks for reading.