What’s in the Way of Your Beauty?
It wasn’t so much that I saw beauty then, but I was clearing the way for it. That’s the way, isn’t it? I sat cross-legged in the chilly grass and dug my hands into the matted brown weeds. Several grass heads slid easily into my hands, but the roots remained firmly in place. The flower…
How Do I Thank God for THAT?
I pour myself another cup of coffee and hear a semi truck’s rumbling exhales on the road outside. A friend’s question has been tumbling through my head this last week and a half. “I know I can thank God for even the hard things in my life — and with hindsight now, I can see…
The Walking Dead and You and Me
Tangy sweet and sour sauce simmers and floats fragrant on the air. Mark is making supper tonight as I catch up on emails and computer work. Five-year old Daniel battles plastic robots behind me while picking up tan chess pieces. Morgan tiptoes up for snacks before being shooed away with the reassurance that supper will…
Chased
The tops and corners of the trees where the sun’s gaze lingered longest turned crimson and trembled in the breeze. My five year old and I walked hand in hand down the pebbled path into the woods, our shadows stretching long against the browning cattails beside us. He scampered on ahead then, whacking branches with…
The French Were Wrong
Two blonde veterinarian students review for a large exam at the coffee table to my left. Tucking their hair into long pony tails, they discuss bovine disorders and throw out rhino-something terms that leave me in the dust. Nestled into a corner beside me, a slender woman with short silver hair and a teal parka…
To All Of Us With Rings
Photo credit to K. Overson There’s something about watching wedding vows from shiny wooden benches in the sunlight. Grey storm clouds that hung ominously overhead all afternoon, suddenly slipped away, and family and friends straightened in the unexpected heat. The bride, with a cut-out lacy back repeated her “I do” vows in giddy joy, and…
Of Brothels and Cameras
He sits there playing Lego Lord of the Rings, on an office chair that’s three times his size. Small shoulders, sun-kissed blonde hair that’s too long and falls into his eyes, and a serious profile on my tiny five-year old man. I see him across the room from me, and everything in me aches and…
Sneaking Away with Him
My moments with him look different each time, it seems. Sometimes we sneak away, balancing books and journals across a wobbly coffee-shop table. In summer, I’m sipping a cold iced coffee or a bubbly tea, but usually it’s just a hot black dark roast coffee, with a tiny room for cream. I slide hair behind…
Confessions of a HomeSchooling Mom
It didn’t seem fair to wake them up early for school on Labor Day, after a late night, so I poured myself another cup of coffee, and relaxed my expectations for the day. This was really more of a school introduction today. As a homeschooling mom to a ninth grader and a kindergartener, with my…
Restoring Romance in a Rushed and Running World
He grabbed my hand as we jaywalked through the parking lot and climbed up cement steps to the history center. On wooden benches, in folding chairs, and across picnic blankets, the crowd swelled and continued to grow. We spread out our picnic sheet, laughing at the too-stereotypical red gingham material, and laid out an easy…