If I had only admitted how I felt sooner. If I had only walked in a moment later. If I had only had the courage to knock. If I’d made the investment, asked the question, been a little bolder or a little less stubborn, how might things have turned out differently? Movie magic is made …
Make It Stop
Hurricane Harvey arrived in Houston, Texas just before Jacob was scheduled for brain surgery that had the potential to end his seizures. Though he turned nineteen during his weeklong evaluation earlier in that year, he was to be treated as a pediatric patient. This would allow me to stay with him in the hospital as …
Shared Stories
Amelia’s courage grew as she reached for the handholds on the rock wall. She gripped tightly to the blue and yellow holds while moving her feet onto the green and red. My husband and I built the playground to last so I had boarded off two open rail sections to keep the babies from falling. …
Preach
I’m stymied! I’m committed to memorizing Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount this year but I’m barely twenty verses in and I’ve hit a wall. Focusing on new verses interrupts my memory of the initial ones. I could use my age as an excuse or cite unrealistic expectations and simply give up but I have other …
No More Ice Cream
Hot and humid was the forecast for our zoo day so I promised my grandbabies soft serve ice cream after lunch. We stood in line behind half a dozen other patrons inching our way toward the ordering window. When only two people remained ahead of us, the worst happened. We saw the lone cashier, half …
Crash! Bang! Boom!
“I’m scared of storms,” Amelia admitted, her little brow furrowed. I was pushing her high, the way she’d asked, in the rocket swing in the garage because the rain was finally coming down in sheets and thunder was beginning to sound in the distance. We’ve all been praying for the forecasted rain to squelch the …
On The Fringe
“Did you say something?” I called to my husband from the kitchen. Thinking he needed my attention, I dried my hands from rinsing dishes and walked to our bedroom where he sat in his rocker next to our Great Dane, Jake, staring disgustedly at his iPad. “Did you need something?” I asked again. “No, sorry,” …
Best Invitation Ever
Variety is the spice of life, they say. I especially enjoy variety in my diet but very often I seem to get stuck in a rut where I rotate the same few meals. My husband and I quickly tire of once favorites and I’m scratching my head wondering what’s for dinner again. My husband is …
Open Doors
My pastor regularly makes use of elaborate sermon illustrations and being a visual learner, I gain a mental peg on which to hang his messages. He insures that I will think about them again during the week as I encounter the everyday articles he chose. My eldest grandson still has not forgotten the sermon where …
Tales As Old As Time
“What are you doing?” It wasn’t a casual question expressing interest. The tone and timber of her voice let him know that he had crossed a line, though unseen. His actions and intentions had been called into question and he reacted badly. This scene plays out in a million storylines of television drama or film, …
