Tag: life

A letter to all of us about Joy– the kind we can’t find at the mall

Dear all of you “Christmas joy makers”, this letter is for you and for me. I know you’re out there. You probably don’t even think you have time to read this little letter. You have Christmas joy to …

The music of Hope – First in our Advent Series

A missing tuxedo shirt, black pants that suddenly seem to have shrunk,  and a cello banging around in the back of my van with the basketballs can only mean one thing. It is concert season! Holidays here we …

Advent in a coffee shop

She wants to see him. That’s it. That’s all she wants. He tries to get her to say more. An actual present, please? He persists. She wipes the corners of her eyes and leans in close to the …

Thankful for things you can’t fix?

I am thankful for things that I cannot fix. My kid raises his eyebrows at me. He’s trying to finish his “thankful for” homework list and  I am not cooperating. “That makes no sense, Mom!” He starts to …

How to use a compass

Orienteering. I just had to Google that word to make sure I was using it correctly. It involves reading a map and using numbers, in the woods on unknown paths. Yeah. My brain is missing the neurons it …

How to do the things you don’t want to do

I hate lists almost as much as I hate math. Seriously. I will do anything to keep from having to enumerate life. My brain thinks freedom is found in being untethered, in lyric and cadence but never with …

Because, No. We are not there yet.

“Are we there yet?”  The most famous question of the summer. My kids ask this on a 5 minute drive to Target; so you can imagine a road trip in our car. And usually I begin the trip by kindly answering their questions, giving them a sign …

Jumping into summer

I didn’t realize how fast it would go. This year, these days, this time. I guess it happens with the change of every season, but I feel the pull of time a little more this year. The books …

God made a boy — or, what I need to remember this mother’s day

This is for the ones who call me mom. The ones who make me laugh, cry, love, worry, clean, scream, clean some more and feel all the things, all the time. For 14 years, I have wondered what was God  thinking when he …

Finding a Seat For Easter

So excited to have the opportunity to share my words over at  the (in)courage community today. It is an honor to be able to write on their site this Holy Week. We have to go move the chairs. It’s Easter — …