Is Your Table Big Enough?
Is your table big enough for folks outside your family? Is your heart large enough to offer a hand of friendship to…
Helping Women Move From Fear into Faith
Category: family
Reaping Where I Didn’t Sow
I stepped outside into a beautiful April morning and did a little trimming in our mini-yard. Compared to the acre we lived on earlier, this one is on the tiny side. I happened along into a small spot in between our house and Debbie’s. There, hidden away, is the most beautiful profuse light blush colored rose bush. I was reminded again that I’m reaping things I didn’t sow.
Back in the Saddle
Today I took out an instrument of torture on the lovely path— the instrument I formerly referred to as my bike.
Charlotte—More Than a Friend
I lost a dear friend this week. Actually, she’s not lost. It’s me who’s lost just knowing she’s not here. Her earthly ties were cut loose and she flew right into the arms of Jesus. I’m hurting for my loss but no doubt the loss is felt much more by her dear husband of over 60 years and all the extended family who loved her so much.
More House Sap
“Our house was not unsentient matter — it had a heart and a soul, and eyes to see with…. We never came home from an absence that its face did not light up and speak out its eloquent welcome — and we could not enter it unmoved.” Mark Twain
Why We Should Keep Throwing Showers
My daughter Katherine was about three years old when I walked upstairs and saw a long row of shoes–our family’s shoes–up and down the hallway, near the bathroom door. There she was, bright eyed with that perpetual smile. “Joy” was the nickname I’d given her. When I asked about the shoes she said, “You told me we’re having a shower so I got everyone’s shoes ready.”
Our BFFs
One Saturday morning years ago, I was cooking breakfast for a table full of ravenous teenage boys. A thought came to my mind, “You don’t even know who you’re serving.” It reminded me that all acts of love are done without our awareness of the ultimate outcome. Who knew the character and accomplishments that would be present in the lives of those boys? God did.
Dreams for My Granddaughter
We just celebrated Eliza Jo’s first birthday with a “pool party” in our back yard. All the cool kids were there.
The grandparent hype is true. Full heart; big feelings.
How to be Strong
Recalling my childhood I don’t remember ever talking about feelings. The unspoken message was to be quiet and good. We knew our parents loved us unconditionally, but it wasn’t exactly in vogue to share feelings.
Ruts
I like ruts. Sameness, ritual, routine. I don’t tire of the same coffee, the same neighbors, same food. I like living in the same house where our babies learned to walk. The house Tom built.
Maturing
Old age, to the unlearned, is winter; to the learned, it’s harvest time.
– Yiddish saying
House Speak
First prize for the Most Unwelcoming House (my conscience prevents me from calling it a home!) goes to one I saw last week. Of modest size, and plopped down in a pleasant little community, this place had no less than four large NO TRESPASSING signs.