I stood in Chrissy’s kitchen and cried. The house was still warm and sweet with the scent of cinnamon rolls and snickerdoodles from our afternoon of baking. The last afternoon together, at least for a while. The tears came suddenly, like the rainstorm that was beating against the windows and soaking the parched ground. I […]
I could feel it in my chest. The pounding of hands and hearts. The music flowing around us, a strong current pulling us to the throne of God. We were all together, held tight in this moment, connecting spirit to Spirit. He was there, and we could feel him. And then it ended,
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
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,
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
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
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
I was in the middle of writing an entirely different blog post, but something happened today that has completely sidetracked my thoughts. My aunt Patsy’s husband, my sweet uncle Don, graduated to Eternity. He’s one of the most joyful and gentle souls I’ve ever known. And while we’re so very happy for him that
Since I was a little girl, I’ve wanted to know how and why things happen. I like to understand what’s going on, to be able to predict an outcome, to have a certain amount of control over my world. Which is why I’ve had a hard time recently. For the last year and a
We thought it would be easy. We didn’t plan for our first baby. She arrived, an unexpected gift, eleven days before our first anniversary. So, naturally, we thought having more kids would be quick and uncomplicated. But we waited, and the years passed. One miscarriage. Then another. Our girl grew older and noticed all