Water can shape a landscape. Rushing water carves out banks over time and riverbeds widen or new channels form. Trees fall creating natural bridges or obstructions. Stones are uncovered. Several days of heavy rain over the past week have carved a trench through our mulch bed. On a walk with my husband and our Great …
RSVP
Handwritten letters have almost entirely disappeared, having been replaced by electronic communication. Invitations, with the exception of weddings, are more than likely texted nowadays. RSVP, when attached to an invitation, once meant the host expected to hear from you. A meal and a place at the table were being reserved in your name at the …
Have You Decided?
Menu confusion is my nemesis, hovering over every lunch date and dinner plan. I can’t concentrate on making conversation for trying to decide what I should order. Usually there are so many excellent choices, it’s hard to choose just one. In my experience, most servers are pretty good at reading their costumers. They recognize indecision …
Feel The Heat
What does pure, unadulterated faith look like, the faith of a child that Jesus commended? I saw it in the face of my eighteen year old son and heard it in his voice, as we contemplated the possibility of brain surgery after eight years of tweaking and changing medications failed to stop his seizures. I …
Fitting In
The year my daughter received a fifteen hundred piece puzzle for Christmas and determined we would not to go to bed until it was finished was the year I stopped enjoying jigsaw puzzles. We finished it, framed it, and said never again! She still enjoys puzzles and games, but with a newborn at home, they’re …
Walking Down Briers
When I received my cancer diagnosis and we found that I would need radiation and chemotherapy before having surgery to remove my tumor, my husband began walking with me and the Danes twice daily, weather-permitting, to keep my heart healthy for surgery. Our community has many well-groomed walking trails, but Paul began cutting a trail …
I Will Not Be Moved
Twelve. The number of homes I’ve occupied in my lifetime. Three before I was married and nine since. Half we’ve owned, half we’ve rented. Some of our moves have been from necessity but some have been our choice. All have been within the same state. In every location, I’ve felt secure, but not necessarily because …
Seamless
Transitioning year to year is fairly seamless. Were it not for the traditional celebrations ringing in the midnight hour, one day would end with a new one beginning while we slept. Nothing noteworthy differentiates December thirty-first from January first in the passing of time. The weather is identical. The days remain short. Some folks have …
Are Your Ears Burning?
How can you tell if you’re the subject of conversation? Does the room become silent when you enter? Does everyone look in your direction or avoid looking at you altogether? I remember my grandmother saying “your ears must be burning” to her dad as he walked into her kitchen. She expected him daily. Depending on …
Star Light, Star Bright
When nights are cold and clear and the moon is waning, stars appear against the blackness like dots on my Light Bright when my baby brother got hold of it. One glance away from the brightest star are numberless smaller points of light. The longer you look, the more you see. I’ve never studied the …
A Fitting Reply 