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Posts by Peter Preble

Peter Preble is a New England essayist, hospice chaplain, and minister whose work explores grief, memory, spirituality, and the quiet wisdom hidden in everyday life. He writes regularly at peterpreble.net, where he reflects on faith, loss, history, and the ordinary moments that quietly shape us.

Peter Preble's Website

How the People We Love Live On in Us

“What we have once enjoyed deeply we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.” ~Helen Keller

Growing up, I thought my father was a pack rat.

He never seemed to throw anything away. Bent nails. Odd screws. Washers without matching bolts. Short pieces of lumber that looked too small to be useful. If there was even the slightest chance something might come in handy someday, he found a place for it in the cellar.

I couldn’t understand it.

Why save things you could replace for a few cents at the hardware store?

He would …