“The boys have loved watching the seven and a half minute video you made of us bringing Timothy home from the hospital,” my daughter told me during a recent visit. “Do you have it on your phone, Lolly?” asked Thomas, joining the conversation. We sat down together on the sofa as I opened my Google …
For the Beauty of the Earth
A sea of green waves triumphantly where for more than two years red clay painted the torn landscape in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. What was washed and rutted, a daily reminder of the storm’s devastation, is gradually becoming a perfectly situated oasis. Construction is expected to begin in the next few weeks on our …
Fully Present
Amelia perched on the edge of the raised bed in my parents’ yard emptying tiny black specks from the pods of a collard my dad let go to seed. She is usually more likely to tear through like a tornado, scattering everything in her path but after a morning with her cousins and a good …
Make Believe
My four grandchildren squeezed into the two foot by two foot by three foot cubby near the floor meant to hold audio video equipment for a home theater in our room above the garage. The shelves and door were never installed. A hand-painted blue and green tree lined canvas rests against the back wall secreting …
Mothering (and Everything Else) in Christ
Dragonflies lay their eggs on the stems of water plants. A creature that soars begins its life underwater. It sheds its skin again and again for nearly two years, it grows until the day it climbs out of the water and appears to die, a dried carcass, clinging lifeless to a stem until one last …
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Listen Like One Who Is Taught
The hour was ending as Ms. Sheila made her way from table to table admiring the work of her three to five year olds in Little Learners. As she approached Amelia’s favorite spot, the sensory bin, Amelia opened fire, peppering her with one question after another. Ever attentive, Ms. Sheila attempted to answer each query, …
Me, Myself & I
The house is quiet today but I am not alone. Ever faithful Jake, our Velcro Dane, haunts my steps, following me from room to room, even to the bathroom. He lumbers to the garage door as I fold laundry, pacing, hoping in vain for an early dinner. I take him out and he chases a …
Eager To Please
“Who wants to…?” Before I got any further, Thomas and Amelia dropped what they had been doing and raced for the kitchen. “I want to do it, Yolly!” Amelia’s words were interrupted by Thomas’s. “You did it last time. It’s my turn.” “No I didn’t.” Whether it’s carrying a piece of cardboard to the recycling …
Outrun You
“Beat you! Beat you!” Ezra’s high pitched squeals echoed the others across the backyard. He runs with his whole body, belly out, arms back, vibrato in his voice keeping rhythm with his bounding steps. The slight grade of our backyard pushes him faster until I’m afraid he may face plant. Still he runs. Amelia challenged …
Peace
“Tree! Crash! Boom! Bang!” Ezra fairly shrieked, little hands motioning above his head. We were playing on the front porch together when the last two aged hardwoods came down. We waited for spring to see how they would fill out before deciding to take them down. Once they were on the ground and the rotted …
A Fitting Reply 