Here in the Highlands
Smoke hangs heavy on the hills around Ukarumpa. Locals burning the dry grass, partly to clear for planting, but also to get the attention of the spirits they worship, pleading in flames and embers for much-needed rain. Dust lays thick on everything, inside the house and out. It billows from the gravel roads, blurring the eyes and choking the lungs. There are whispers of drought. Water tanks are running dangerously low. People are borrowing jugs from neighbors who have some to spare, relying on kindness to be able to wash dishes, to cook, to quench thirst. The rainy season is coming, they say. It couldn’t be here soon enough. The hillsides burn on, a deadly and silent cry for help to spirits who neither hear nor care. And then it starts. One drop, two, twenty,...
Read MoreA Teacher’s Legacy
Time heals, they say. And it’s true, but there are some things that don’t fade over the years. Like the memory of someone’s laugh or the deep reservoirs carved by words spoken again and again. It’s been two years this weekend since my mom’s battle with cancer ended and she stepped, whole and healed, into eternity. Tears don’t come as frequently as they did for a while, but there are still days the ache to hear her voice is visceral and overwhelming. Sometimes I still reach for the phone without thinking to call and ask for a recipe or to tell her about something funny one of the kids did. Oh, how I wish Heaven had cell phone reception. She was only five feet tall, but my mom made a big impact on anyone she met. I love it when people know me as “Jo’s daughter”,...
Read MoreThat Look
We’ve had some beautiful summer days recently, and we’ve done some beautiful summer things. The other day, the girls and I joined the little one’s Sunday school class at a local park for playtime and popsicles, and then we ran by the drug store to pick up a prescription. The grocery store right across the parking lot carries good produce, so we stopped in to get some fruit for smoothies before heading next door to the new Lebanese bistro to split a shawarma wrap. Then it was home for naptime for Little Bit and mango banana shakes for the big girl and me. Our beautiful day was capped off by a picnic in the state park near our house. Reading back over the day’s events, I think, “That sounds perfect. Whose life is that anyway?” Because, in reality, our...
Read MoreBlessed
I sat this afternoon with a friend. This friend of mine, she’s sick. Her future is uncertain at best. We needed tissues, my friend and I. We talked about Heaven, about family, about dying. About God’s grace, portioned out day by day. We talked about flowers and her love for gardening and about music that heals the soul. We talked about faith and the long path it sometimes takes to get there. She held my hand, and we prayed like we were drowning, desperate and gasping for the presence of the God who brings peace. The way life goes, with its twists and turns, is not for the faint of heart. And perspective is never clearer than when we’re nearing the end of the road. The sky was bluer when I walked out her door. The laughter of my children made me want to freeze...
Read MoreDribbling Glory
Last week, a former student stayed with us. We’ve known her since she was a kid, so she knows a lot about us. But for five days she was privy to all that makes us a red-blooded, human family: our arguments, our chaos, our morning breath… Living side-by-side with people, seeing them in all their pre-coffee, bed headed glory, reveals new facets of their character. Letting others into private spaces where they can see the unfiltered us takes courage. It’s risky. The stakes are high. Having someone observe us day in and day out forces the “R” word out into the open. Reality. And reality is not always attractive. I am a broken, messy person, and the things in my soul are sometimes not very pretty. There are parts of me I would rather have nobody see. But...
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