These are centers of serenity where you find the passion to remake the world in spite of overwhelming odds. To retreat into an alcove, a niche, a chamber, or a closet for the purpose of facing fears and foibles is essential. We lay our issues before the Almighty and leave believing in a better outcome. [...]

In my own childhood home, a tunnel-like closet connected my parents’ bedroom to the one I shared with my sister. The closet was great for hide-and-seek or stashing secret treasures among boxes of who-knows-what. It was popular with little friends who came to play. Scrambling through the dresses and shoes with a playmate was like [...]

The homes in actress Debby Boone’s Burbank, California, neighborhood are small and plain. Economy Chevy’s and Fords line the curbs. There are no BMW’s, lush gardens, turquoise pools, or multistory houses.
Then you see it, squeezed between two simple ranch-style dwellings: a stunning chateau. A river-rock turret rises upward, swirled like a licorice vine between strands [...]