Recently in my BYU Western Humanities course, I taught a lecture I call “How to ‘read’ a painting.” Most college students understand not only how to read, but how to read with some depth and analysis. They understand the what — character, plot, and setting. They can also ascertain the how — theme, style, and symbolism. And, of course, some of the best discussions flourish when we try to ultimately understand the why of the writing, the author’s intent, the connections to our own humanity, and the relevance might have for our own lived experiences. But in a Humanities course, where we study great works of art as well as…

Author introduction by Sharlee Mullins Glenn: This week’s devotional is a guest post from Claudia Mills. Claudia is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Colorado, a fantastic writer of books for children, and a dear friend. She’s also, like it or not, a role model to everyone who knows her. Thank you, Claudia, for being willing to share this with us. I’m rooting for you, and I know that everyone who reads this will be too. May we all amaze ourselves. ____________________________________________________________ I am in the midst of what might be the saddest season of my life so far, dealing with crises of staggering proportions for two…

I woke up one morning this past June with what seemed to be a smudge of Vaseline on my right eye. When I looked straight ahead the center of everything was blurry. As the day wore on, my vision in that eye stayed wonky. I tracked down an ophthalmologist who did a variety of tests with expensive machinery that could take images of the inside of my eyeball. Apparently some small blood vessels in the back of my eye had burst. “Vascular occlusion” was the term the doctor used. Untreated, it could get worse, eventually leading to possible blindness. “Don’t worry,” she said. “There’s a treatment. A series of shots…