Our Book is Ready
I’m rocking back and forth, tossing actually, like a woman on a boat bracing herself before the next wave sends the entire contents shifting across the deck. There is a storm happening in my head. I know I’m blowing it out of proportion. It’s really not that big of a deal. It’s just that I’ve
Wallpaper Woes
You know that thing that happens where people complain obnoxiously loud about something just so they can be relieved from their duties? Eventually someone else steps in and says, “Here, just let me do it.” My kids are pros at that. They know if they fumble around long enough with my glass pitcher while they’re
Kindness Helps Us See More Clearly
You know what I love about this time of year? The Hallmark Channel. I can sit for hours watching cheesy holiday movies. They usually involve some small town charm and an act of kindness that probably wouldn’t ever happen in real life. Or maybe it would. This story from Teresa Braaten of Wyndmere, ND reminds
Shiplap to the Rescue
Saul and I just bought a fixer-upper lake house. We envision long, lazy summer days filled with sounds of laughter and the splash of water as our children jump off the dock. We knew going into this project that there would be no early morning fishing or late night marshmallows until we put in quite
Kindness or Selflessness?
Who is in control of your body? Your time? Your decisions? I have a friend who asked me an intriguing question. She said, “Are selflessness and kindness the same thing?” I thought about her question all day. Then I thought about her question the next day and the next. My brain wants to produce a
Hunger and Kindness Lead to New Friendship
More often than not, when we do random acts of kindness, we never hear about it again. We don’t ever truly know the impact it made on the other person. We just have to trust that kindness worked whatever magic in that person’s life that was needed at that exact moment. But every once in
My Dad Won’t Read My Book
Pain and joy exist simultaneously. I’d say I wish it weren’t true. I’d say I wish I could just have the joy without the pain, but then I guess the reverse would also have to be true. I’d have to accept the pain without the joy. Where would that have left me during my breast
