Obituaries for Drew Christiansen, S.J., mentioned his extensive writings on foreign policy issues and the Middle East, but he was also a talented and lyrical nature writer.
Ruby in Paradise is a wonderful, life-affirming movie about a young woman who has that kind of luck. It s a celebration of heart, courage and persistence. It stars Ashley Judd, in one of the very best performances of the year, as Ruby Lee Gissing, age about 20, who gets in the car and drives away from her dead-end existence in Tennessee, and finds herself in Florida. We never find out much about what she left behind; she doesn t want to remember it. In Florida, what she basically seeks is a job that pays enough to meet her living expenses, so she can support herself and be independent.