Left or right, Dad? Left. Up or down? Down.
The ornaments were laid out on the tray table in front of my father. As I picked each one up, I’d ask him where we should put it.
This is the first tree my dad and I have decorated together in at least 25 years. I was 21 and he was 58. Both ... Read More
Saul is a college basketball coach. He came home from practice the other night, and as usual, called out, “Hellooooo!” as he opened the door.
As usual, he dropped his work stuff on the floor and headed straight to the kitchen.
After he got some food in his belly, he returned to the couch, as usual, and opened his computer.
Once he got ... Read More
Please don’t call me busy.
Busy means I don’t have time to talk on the phone.
Busy means I can’t come to your house for coffee.
Busy means there are more important things in life than you.
And that’s simply not true.
If I tell you I’m too busy, it means I’ve done a bad job of creating margins in my life.
It means I need ... Read More
Have you ever had a MONDAY that lasted all day?
I had one a few weeks ago and it wasn’t pretty.
I woke up crabby. I took my son to school crabby. I went to Pickleball crabby. Then the crabby turned to sad. I ate cookies sad. I read a book sad. I took a nap sad.
Eventually, I wandered into my office ... Read More
Being lost is such a scary feeling.
I remember being lost in the hilly one-way streets of Athens, Ohio a few days after we had moved to town. The panic started to rise in my throat until it reached my eyes and flowed out as tears. I pulled over and called my husband at work. Repeatedly. Until he finally answered.
His voice ... Read More
I need a Year of Jubilee. How about you?
What is a Year of Jubilee, you ask?
Think of a Mardi Gras celebration that covers the entire nation for an entire year.
Now take away the sex, booze, and parades. Add in a whole lot of forgiveness.
That’s the Year of Jubilee.
In the Old Testament, we learn the Year of Jubilee happened every 50 ... Read More
I can remember my anger like it was yesterday. It happened 29 years ago, and yet I can still see myself yelling, stomping and slamming a bedroom door.
I was a junior in high school and a boy invited me to visit him at his college two hours from our hometown.
We weren’t dating. We were just friends and he thought I’d ... Read More
When my kids were little, they always wanted to talk to me while I was in the bathroom. In the shower or on the throne, it seemed their most pressing questions came when I was a bit indisposed.
These days, I’d live in the bathroom if it meant my kids would voluntarily come talk to me.
They are so busy (I hate ... Read More
I’ve talked a lot about my mom over the last ten years. The falling apart and the coming together and what God can do to mend fences, and the way he changes my rotten wood attitude before he hammers in that first nail.
This weekend, I got to visit my dad.
Five years ago, my dad had a stroke that left him ... Read More
I am on the struggle bus lately when it comes to food. I’ve been doing all the right things – keeping a food journal, cutting up the veggies as soon as they enter the house, buying bigger underwear.
I even started going to a dietician because I wanted advice on how to properly feed my family. We’ve become such a grab-and-go ... Read More
