Four Weddings Of Maison Steinbuchel – Love, Elegance and Disappointments

“To love at all is to be vulnerable.” – C.S. Lewis “Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, and therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” – William Shakespeare June is rapidly approaching, as is the peak of the wedding season.  Even in these times, June weddings continue as a tradition.  It seemed […]

How Diving Into The Histories Of Ancestral Geography Expands Understanding

“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots. ” –  Marcus Garvey Diving into the histories of the families which converged into one and eventually made their home at Maison Steinbüchel, is an ongoing endeavor.  We do so, to better understand the Kansas Historic Landmark […]

Taking Time For Exciting Memorable Chance Encounters

For me, serendipity, coincidence and chance are more interesting than any preconceived construct of our human encounters. –Charles Traub Recently while my husband was blowing off our sidewalks, he spotted a gentleman taking time looking over our house from the curb.  This is not an uncommon occurrence, since the house, even in its current “need […]

The Real Story Of Our Stunning “Tiffany” Window – A Sparkling Jewel

“Color is to the eye what music is to the ear.: – Louis Comfort Tiffany At the first turn of the curved front staircase in our home is a stunning Tiffany style mosaic stained glass window.  We first laid eyes on it the summer of 1987 when we traveled to Kansas on a “pre-house hunting” […]

Five Invisible Threads Holding A Carousel True To Purpose

“Invisible threads are the strongest ties.”  ― Friedrich Nietzsche My husband and I are members of Botanica, The Wichita Gardens.  This is the new home for the Joyland Carousel which opened to the public fall of 2019.  We visited the building site several times while it was under construction. Then as an anniversary outing, in December […]

Repairing the Breach, Restoring Streets, Rebuilding Ruins

“And those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins; you will raise of the age-old foundations; you will be called repairing the breach, the restorer of the streets in which to dwell.”   Isaiah 58:12 There are a series of BLOG posts about how the families, for whom our historic home is named, converged […]

The Joyful Pleasure Of Riding A Bike

Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of riding a bike” – John F Kennedy In this season of social distancing, face masks and isolation, a the joyful pleasure of a simple bike ride can do wonders.  Here is a reflection on a ride I took some years ago,  through eyes that saw the contribution of […]

A Time Tested Lesson In Processing Loss And Grief

“Trials make you strong. Failure makes you humble. Challenges make you strive. Life keeps you going and growing” ― Kemi Sogunle, Beyond the Pain by Kemi Sogunle Over the past months, the world, literally, has been in a state of shock.  This pandemic, this silent thief, has us all dealing with loss at many levels.  The loss: […]