Generational Blessings I was blessed with a godly mother who taught me to pray, read my bible, and wait on the Lord. I saw her faith in action every day. It wasn’t that she didn’t hit rough patches, nor was she perfect in everything she did. She’d be the first to tell you what a... Continue Reading →
Love Is A Decision There are a few words in my house that treated differently than others. One is "hate" - no-one is allowed to use that word about someone in the family. Outside of the family, even referring to objects, that particular expression is very seldom used. Another is "sorry." If someone in the... Continue Reading →
Derailed Blessings don't always look like blessings at first. About two and half weeks after my son got his first car to go to his first career job, it broke down. Not just a little breakdown, a catastrophic, “This car is dead to you” type breakdown. I began driving him to and from work every... Continue Reading →
The Greatest Gift Quite unexpectedly, my youngest daughter made me cry last night. It wasn't because she was mean. She didn't hurt me or cause me pain. She made me cry because I realized that she understood something about us - something she needed to know. An off-handed remark about an essay she needed to... Continue Reading →
Expectations 'Tis the season for high expectations. But what happens when those expectations don't match reality? What happens when the doll you wanted is not the doll you got or the education you worked so hard to complete doesn't end up providing the life, career, or stability you expected? Are we grateful for what we... Continue Reading →
DIY Life Under Construction I like home improvement or really any DIY type of thing. Projects get me excited because I immediately start imagining all of the things I'd like to do. Note I said, "I'd like to do," not all the things I can do. That's because, despite liking to do things myself, I've... Continue Reading →
Sacrifices & Scapegoats I've heard a lot in recent weeks about how the country is so divided now, how the "left" or the "right" have been so "divisive," or how the media is so "divisive." It's a great talking point. I mean, it's wonderful to be able to pin the blame of all the current... Continue Reading →
Sticky Situations The sink I had emptied of dishes only an hour before was now full. The clean table was covered in flour, floury measuring cups, butter remnants, sugar, cinnamon, and something singularly sticky. She stood there smiling, arm extended with a lunch bag. Walking to the trunk, she explained that she knew I was... Continue Reading →
My parents split up when I was three so I usually only saw him every other weekend, two weeks in the summer and on alternating holidays. This meant that the longest time we spent together was 14 days. Pop was always doing something, fixing something, rigging something and he loved having us kids help him... Continue Reading →
My son came home for a surprise visit last evening, so we all went for a walk by the water around sunset. It was nice to have him back, and while we walked and talked together, my shoulders relaxed, knowing he was safely beside me. It's an odd feeling this growing older and children leaving... Continue Reading →
I toyed with the idea of entitling this Jesus Didn't Work A Desk Job, but I changed my mind because desk jobs are hard too - just differently. I was attempting to evoke an image of action. Of force. Of strength. I realized that the best way to do that was to imagine Him in my world... Continue Reading →
The sermon this week was about building on the work of those before you - using their legacy as a path forward. It made me think about both what I had built my life upon and what my children would use as stepping stones from my life. It made me feel wholly inadequate. As parents,... Continue Reading →
